A MOVE to bring in a fee at Jersey General Hospital to discourage inappropriate use of the Emergency Department should be delayed until further details about the proposal is made clear, a Scrutiny panel has stated.
The Health and Social Security Panel has lodged an amendment to the government’s Budget addressing plans by Health Minister Tom Binet to bring in the Emergency Department charge, as well as a penalty for those who do not turn up for appointments.
Although supportive of the “did not attend” charge, and the principle of Islanders only using the Emergency Department in the event of a genuine emergency, the panel said a number of patients had expressed concern about the latter charge.
In the report accompanying the amendment, the panel said that the introduction of the Emergency Department charge should be deferred until assurances and safeguards has been developed, including a detailed assessment of any additional staffing and financial resources required, a clear timeline and risk assessment, consultation with staff and training for those employees who needed it, and a defined list of exemption criteria.
The panel’s proposal is among a raft of amendments that will be considered during next week’s Budget debate.
