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Qld LNP wary about Mackay hospital probe

Marty Silk and Fraser BartonAAP
LNP health spokeswoman Ros Bates has questioned the independence of the Mackay Hospital review.
Camera IconLNP health spokeswoman Ros Bates has questioned the independence of the Mackay Hospital review. Credit: AAP

The Liberal National Party has questioned the independence of a clinical review of alleged patient harm at a public hospital in north Queensland.

The Mackay Hospital and Health Service has appointed Sunshine Coast University Hospital experts Professor Edward Weaver and Dr Greg Duncombe to lead a review at Mackay Base Hospital starting the first week of November.

It is the second clinical review launched in a month, with an inquiry of malpractice at the Caboolture Hospital due to conclude on Monday.

LNP health spokeswoman Ros Bates has questioned whether the Mackay Hospital review will be wide enough, or really independent, with two Queensland Health employees leading it.

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"With regards to the inquiry we haven't seen the terms of reference yet. We are a little concerned that it's Queensland Health judging Queensland Health, we saw that with the Caboolture inquiry," she told reporters on Thursday.

"We also don't know the timeframe as to how far back they're actually looking to say whether patients have been harmed."

A dedicated hotline set up to take evidence for the inquiry has already received almost 60 calls.

At least one doctor has been suspended at Mackay Hospital and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) has also suspended the facility's accreditation to train obstetricians and gynaecologists.

Health Minister Yvette D'Ath commended Mackay HHS chief executive Lisa Davies Jones for setting up the review so quickly.

"Those are the right decisions to make. That's what consumers would expect, acting quickly to deal with that," she told reporters.

"So there's a review ongoing now, there's terms of reference being developed, the reviewers have been appointed. Let's wait for that review to occur."

Queensland LNP leader David Crisafulli said the state government only seemed to act when problems came under media scrutiny.

"It seems to be that the government's more interested in how things look, than how they actually are," he told reporters.

"Paramedics and nurses and doctors have reached out to us to say they're struggling under a system that just at breaking point.

"We just can't allow coronavirus to be used as the excuse. This started seven years ago - ambulance ramping was 15 per cent in 2015, it was 29 per cent the month before coronavirus, and today it's at 42 per cent statewide."

Ms D'Ath said it was rich for the LNP to be talking about problems at hospitals but failing to unequivocally support vaccine mandates.

"I'm a little bit fed up with the LNP standing up talking about individual hospitals, holding their townhall meetings, talking about pressures on the health system and not going out and supporting the push on the vaccination," she said.

"Simply saying you vaccinated yourself is not actually encouraging people to get vaccinated."

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