Fix Western Health – NSW Liberals and Nationals will help communities breath easy

24 September 2009

One Barwon constituent’s battle for something most of us take for granted, oxygen, further highlights the inherent inefficiency of the NSW Labor Government’s health system in Western NSW according to Shadow Minister for Preventative Health, Kevin Humphries.

Mr Humphries recently met with Coonabarabran constituent, Harold Osborne, regarding his entitlement for assistance through the Oxygen/Respiratory Aids Scheme for a D sixes back-up oxygen cylinder.

“Currently Mr Osborne attends hospital possibly up to six times per year, always via an ambulance, the result of breathing difficulties which could at times be circumvented with a back up cylinder.”

Mr Osborne suffers severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and while he has a home oxygen concentrator, he was approved a D size oxygen bottle through GWAHS.

However he has been on a waiting list now for 12 months since there is not a cylinder available at Lourdes Hospital, Dubbo.

“Where is the commitment to preventative health strategies?”

“The current cylinder Mr Osborne has now cost $84.33 per month, a lot for pensioners to pay. Mr Osborne admits he does not go out much and does not get the exercise he needs in an attempt to conserve oxygen,” Mr Humphries said.

Mr Humphries said while this cost was a lot for a pensioner, the cost of supporting a back up cylinder was insignificant to the alternative of hospital.

“This is another classic case for decentralising local decision making on a small item eliminating very large blow outs in cost.

“A hospital transfer can vary locally from $350 to $1500 and a hospital stay can cost hospitals approximately $1200 a day in places such as Dubbo. An adequate D sized cylinder would mean Mr Osborne could be catered for at a local level as opposed to costly hospital stays averaging many thousands of dollars a year.

“Staff in the system do not have the flexibility to make decisions locally that will benefit both the patient and the health care system.

“The figures just don’t stack up, $960 a year support in gas versus up to $40,000 in ambulance transfers and hospital stays. I’m not saying all hospital transfers will be avoided but many will, and the scary thing is this is certainly not an isolated case.
Mr Humphries said patients and carers needed to be more involved in the decision making process, empowering them and giving them confidence that they have the correct equipment and support medication at hand.

“It is not on that our residents have to fight tooth and hammer for something as simple as oxygen. New South Wales Labor Health management is caught in a ‘sledge hammer to crack a nut’ approach and it’s time to turn this around.