❓ Mr. Wyatt questions the Minister for Health regarding the denial of entry to frail Mungullah residents at Carnarvon hospital and evacuation shelters during a cyclone. The Minister acknowledges shortcomings in the response but disputes some details of the account.
AnsweredQoN 174Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DISASTER
RESPONSE PLAN — CORAL BAY RESIDENTS — EVACUATION OF AGED AND
FRAIL
174. Mr B.S. WYATT to the
Minister for Health:
I refer to the plight of the five frail and medically
vulnerable Mungullah community residents during the recent cyclone, two of whom
were wheelchair-bound and four of whom are elderly, who were refused entry to
the Carnarvon hospital and nearby evacuation shelters on the basis that those
areas had been set aside for Coral Bay residents and a town based–aged
care facility.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that disaster response plans had explicitly stated that aged
and frail people should be evacuated to the hospital?
(2) Can he
confirm that these very elderly and frail patients were refused entry to the
hospital on numerous occasions that day in the face of the approaching cyclone?
(3) Can he
confirm that they were also refused entry to nearby evacuation centres, also on
numerous occasions, despite those assisting the patients explaining that they
had nowhere else to go?
RESPONSE PLAN — CORAL BAY RESIDENTS — EVACUATION OF AGED AND
FRAIL
174. Mr B.S. WYATT to the
Minister for Health:
I refer to the plight of the five frail and medically
vulnerable Mungullah community residents during the recent cyclone, two of whom
were wheelchair-bound and four of whom are elderly, who were refused entry to
the Carnarvon hospital and nearby evacuation shelters on the basis that those
areas had been set aside for Coral Bay residents and a town based–aged
care facility.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that disaster response plans had explicitly stated that aged
and frail people should be evacuated to the hospital?
(2) Can he
confirm that these very elderly and frail patients were refused entry to the
hospital on numerous occasions that day in the face of the approaching cyclone?
(3) Can he
confirm that they were also refused entry to nearby evacuation centres, also on
numerous occasions, despite those assisting the patients explaining that they
had nowhere else to go?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3)
There is quite a bit of hyperbole and exaggeration in the question, but the
basic concept of what the member asked —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Which bit is exaggerated?
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
will tell you if you shut up and listen.
Several members interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The
basic concept of the member's question is correct.
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Which bit is exaggerated?
The SPEAKER :
Members!
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : It
is his question. Did I see the member for Girrawheen look up to see whether
anyone is listening to her interjection?
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Did
she look over there to see whether they were listening to her interjection? She
made an interjection and looked —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you very much.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for Warnbro! Member for West Swan
and member for Mandurah, I call you to order for the first time. Minister for
Health, I want the answer through the Chair.
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Girrawheen, I do not want to hear from you.
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
have been trying to get to the bottom of exactly what happened. The bit about
Coral Bay does not seem to be correct.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : The
residents from Coral Bay, do you mean?
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Yes. But it is correct that five people went to the hospital to seek shelter
prior to the storm. In anticipation of the storm moves were made by the
hospital staff to go out to all those people within the community who were seen
to be at risk and invite them to come to stay at the hospital. The hospital was
largely for patients from within the hospital, for some aged-care patients seen
to be at risk and for staff who were working within the hospital. That was set
aside. The five people came and it was deemed they were not part of that cohort
and were sent to the location of the shelter. I do not know the reasons why.
Our people were not involved in managing the shelter. The people said, no; they
were okay but two of them in particular were unwell and were at risk and should
go back to the hospital, so the group went back to the hospital. The hospital
agreed that, given they had nowhere else to go, two of them should stay at the
hospital. One of them agreed to stay. The second did not because the person
with her who was not eligible would not have been able to stay as well because
it was pretty crowded already in the area they had set aside in the hospital,
so she chose to leave.
It does not sound like a satisfactory situation and I think
some work needs to be done so that when people such as that present, we can
make sure there is an alternative place for them to go. It was a fairly
unsatisfactory situation, but it was not quite as the member said.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : It
was not exaggerated at all.
The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park!
Dr K.D. HAMES : If
the member reads what he said and what I said, he will find variation.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : For
example, I think the mention of the Coral Bay resident and the use of the
phrase ''frequent times''—there are words in there that
are not correct. That is all I have said to the member.
There is quite a bit of hyperbole and exaggeration in the question, but the
basic concept of what the member asked —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Which bit is exaggerated?
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
will tell you if you shut up and listen.
Several members interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The
basic concept of the member's question is correct.
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Which bit is exaggerated?
The SPEAKER :
Members!
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : It
is his question. Did I see the member for Girrawheen look up to see whether
anyone is listening to her interjection?
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Did
she look over there to see whether they were listening to her interjection? She
made an interjection and looked —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you very much.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for Warnbro! Member for West Swan
and member for Mandurah, I call you to order for the first time. Minister for
Health, I want the answer through the Chair.
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Girrawheen, I do not want to hear from you.
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
have been trying to get to the bottom of exactly what happened. The bit about
Coral Bay does not seem to be correct.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : The
residents from Coral Bay, do you mean?
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Yes. But it is correct that five people went to the hospital to seek shelter
prior to the storm. In anticipation of the storm moves were made by the
hospital staff to go out to all those people within the community who were seen
to be at risk and invite them to come to stay at the hospital. The hospital was
largely for patients from within the hospital, for some aged-care patients seen
to be at risk and for staff who were working within the hospital. That was set
aside. The five people came and it was deemed they were not part of that cohort
and were sent to the location of the shelter. I do not know the reasons why.
Our people were not involved in managing the shelter. The people said, no; they
were okay but two of them in particular were unwell and were at risk and should
go back to the hospital, so the group went back to the hospital. The hospital
agreed that, given they had nowhere else to go, two of them should stay at the
hospital. One of them agreed to stay. The second did not because the person
with her who was not eligible would not have been able to stay as well because
it was pretty crowded already in the area they had set aside in the hospital,
so she chose to leave.
It does not sound like a satisfactory situation and I think
some work needs to be done so that when people such as that present, we can
make sure there is an alternative place for them to go. It was a fairly
unsatisfactory situation, but it was not quite as the member said.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : It
was not exaggerated at all.
The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park!
Dr K.D. HAMES : If
the member reads what he said and what I said, he will find variation.
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : For
example, I think the mention of the Coral Bay resident and the use of the
phrase ''frequent times''—there are words in there that
are not correct. That is all I have said to the member.
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