Select a region
A Jersey consultant has raised concerns that not enough is being spent on the "structurally deteriorating" General Hospital after flooding put a clinic room out of action last week.
Dr David Ng, a gastroenterologist at the hospital, took to social media to share a photograph of a clinic room in the General Hospital which was flooded by overnight rain at the end of last week.
The Government explained: “Following heavy rain in the early hours of Friday (1 September) morning an internal rainwater downpipe was blocked by detritus, causing water within the box gutter to overflow.
"Hospital Engineers attended to manage the internal water ingress which resulted in some minor damage to ceiling tiles.
"The affected clinic room was temporarily closed. This is standard practice to ensure Infection Control process are met."
@StatesAssembly Good morning. Update on the structure of the hospital. Clinic room closed again due to flooding from over night rain. #ineptitude #indecision #ill-informed #hoodwinked. We need a new (single site) hospital asap pic.twitter.com/bANHZSApn7
— David Ng (@JerseyGIdoctor) September 1, 2023
Dr Ng claimed that the problem happens "nearly every time there is heavy rainfall" which "takes out a room for patients who need to be isolated prior to a procedure because they have a 'superbug' infection and need to be quarantined away from other patients".
However, the Government confirmed that the affected room was not due to be used when the flooding occurred and said that: "No appointments have been cancelled and patients are unaffected by its closure."
The Government added that the clinic room was set to be reviewed by engineers, signed off as fit for use, then cleaned, and signed off by the Infection Prevention and Control team before reopening.
However, Dr Ng said that the latest problem was illustrative of the wider issue of a hospital "deteriorating structurally".
The £30,000 Government review of the 'Our Hospital Project' – which recommended scrapping the Overdale project in favour of a multi-site approach – dedicated an entire section explaining in detail the challenges facing the Jersey General Hospital.
More than 5,500 unexpected 'ailments' were identified in the year leading up the review's publication in November 2022, including asbestos, fire risks, sewage struggles, and building fabric issues.
Pictured: In 2022, the Health and Community Services Department scheduled 8,902 maintenance activities of which 5,404 were related to the General Hospital
Earlier this year, the Health Minister has revealed more details of work to maintain the ageing General Hospital while new facilities are developed – at a cost of £5 million per year.
Deputy Karen Wilson said that the annual £5m cost would address the most urgent building and infrastructure maintenance needs, as well as infection-control issues, until new health facilities were delivered.
However, Former Deputy Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham, who held political responsibility for the hospital project before last year’s general election, criticised the current government’s "make-do-and-mend" approach to the "healthcare facilities crisis".
Dr Ng added: "The hospital is deteriorating structurally and the £5m set aside for maintenance until the 'new' hospital facilities are built is inadequate."
The Government confirmed that whilst Health and Community Services has a budget for £5m per year for maintenance, the department could spend more subject to Government Plan funding.
The Health department has additional monies allocated in the 2023-2026 Government Plan.
Pictured: The Enid Quenault Health and Wellbeing Centre recently opened at the former Les Quennevais School site.
The Government added: “As part of the New Healthcare Facilities Programme, plans are being developed to deliver new healthcare facilities for Jersey.
"Last month, as part of the first delivery of services under the Programme, the Enid Quenault Health and Wellbeing Centre opened at the former Les Quennevais School site. The facilities at the Centre have been designed to provide a new home for health services that have operated from Overdale Hospital, improving the experience for patients and staff.
"Following the completion of the Enid Quenault Health and Wellbeing Centre, the priority for the Programme team is the delivery of the new Acute Hospital at Overdale. The aim is for building work on this facility to commence in 2025. The Programme will deliver acute, ambulatory, mental health and other care facilities as a rolling programme over the coming years.”
FOCUS: Diagnosing the hospital's thousands of ailments
Gov applies to keep "temporary" hospital operating theatres for another decade
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.