Widespread cover-ups of treatment failures

The Health Quality and Safety Commission's recent call for surgical data to be publicly reported is strangely at variance with the secrecy recently experienced by the Democrats' health spokesman David Tranter in a series of exchanges with the Commission’s CEO, Dr. Janice Wilson.

Mr. Tranter's initial enquiry concerned the call by Canadian surgeon Teodor Grantcherov for the surgery equivalent of aircraft black boxes to be placed in operating theatres to enable more effective recording of what happens during operations. Dr. Wilson replied that they were not interested which is clearly at variance with their expressed concern over "surgical performance and other health care outcomes".

The Democrats also point to the Commission's refusal to say how their numerous "consumer representatives" may be contacted. According to the Commission’s statement, recent consultations did include "consumers". But if the general public doesn’t know who, or where, their representatives are how can they have input into the Commission's consultation processes?

“Dr. Wilson said that the Commission does not consider "individual" cases. So how can any realistic picture be built up if the individuals who make up the survey population are not considered?

“Given that one of the major barriers to improving DHB treatment efficiency is the widespread evasion and frustration of patient/family complaints when treatment goes seriously wrong it is the height of hypocrisy for this lavishly-resourced organisation ($13 million plus annual budget) to be preaching about transparency and improving surgical performance,” Mr. Tranter said.

“By so doing the Commission joins what is in effect a widespread cover-up of treatment failures connived in by DHBs, the Health and Disability Commissioner, the Coronial system and, not least, successive Ministers of Health.

“Given that when I last raised such issues with every MP only 7 out of 121 acknowledged my letter, and only one of them made any sort of thoughtful comment, it seems reasonable to include Parliament in the great treatment failure cover-up” Mr. Tranter concluded.

ENDS

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