SPENDING cuts within the Health Department risk compromising patient care, a former Hospital consultant has said as he delivered a withering diagnosis of the state of healthcare services in the Island.
Neil MacLachlan criticised ‘bizarre decision-making’ by management in closing specialist wards and described the ‘shockingly poor’ condition of the Hospital’s Maternity Unit, with backed-up sewage overflowing from sinks. He said the unit would not pass an inspection in the UK or EU and should have been replaced a decade ago.
The Health Department has denied many of the claims and emphasised its commitment to providing the best services for Islanders and the best working environment possible for staff.
After almost 30 years in post as obstetrics and gynaecology consultant in Jersey, Mr Mac-Lachlan resigned in 2020 and left his position at the end of January 2021.
In an interview with the JEP, he said he was speaking out in the best interests of staff, patients and the Island, and because he felt that existing Health Department employees were afraid to voice criticism.
The lack of inspection by an external body such as the Care Quality Commission in the UK was described by Mr MacLachlan as contributing towards substandard conditions. He added that, although staff recognised the situation, they were unable to influence budgetary decisions made by senior management, and that management needed to spell out the consequences of a lack of investment to politicians.
He said: ‘Savings can only be made by reducing staffing levels and the reduction in trained staff on the wards can lead to poorer patient care, staff dissatisfaction, increased sickness levels and more pressure on colleagues who are left at work.
‘High bed occupancy rates have become the norm, levels at which patient care may be compromised.’
Levels of patient care had suffered as a result of the closure of specialist facilities such as the Samarès Ward rehabilitation centre at Overdale and the gynaecological care provided at Rayner Ward in the General Hospital, Mr MacLachlan said.
Addressing the Maternity Unit, he said: ‘The facilities are shockingly poor and the unit would not pass any UK or European inspection.
‘Midwives have struggled to care for women, some with high-risk complex problems, in substandard premises with shared toilets and incidents where sewage backs up and leaks.’
The former consultant, who was awarded an MBE 12 months ago for services to health and the community, expressed reservations about the Jersey Care Model, the blueprint for the future of healthcare in the Island.
Mr MacLachlan said he decided to resign in 2020, at the age of 64, as a result of feeling ‘shattered’ by the demands of full-time work, including on-call duties. He called on the Health Department to follow the recommendations of the British Medical Association and allow greater flexibility for employees who were approaching retirement age but still had plenty to offer.
A Health Department spokesperson said Mr MacLachlan wasn’t privy to the ‘multiple mechanisms’ for frontline staff to communicate with senior managers and clinical/professional leaders.
Funding for improvements had been allocated in the Government Plan, the spokesperson added, with specific investment in obstetrics and gynaecology.
The Health Department also said that quality standards were established and subject to regular reports and that work was under way to ‘transform’ the Maternity Unit.
lFull interview and Health Department response – see pages 8 and 9
