Speaker 1: My name is Hedley Thomas. Sick to Death is based
Speaker 1: on my book of the same name, and it's the
Speaker 1: true story of doctor Jan Patel's lies and manipulation and
Speaker 1: the herculean effort it took to finally stop him. We've
Speaker 1: used voice actors throughout this series, and on occasion the
Speaker 1: real people from the story have read their words for us.
Speaker 1: It is brought to you by Me and the Australian.
Speaker 1: Chapter twenty nine, Make or Break, eighteen March two thousand
Speaker 1: and five. The two lane road from Bunderberg to Seaside
Speaker 1: Baghara was one Tony Hoffman had traveled often. Its red
Speaker 1: dirt shoulders give way to waving fields of sugarcane, strawberry plantations,
Speaker 1: acres of beans, and roadside produced stalls with hand lettered signs.
Speaker 1: The nurse noticed none of these as she gripped the
Speaker 1: wheel of her Burgundy red miss and pulsar and sped
Speaker 1: through a storm and fierce rain to rob Messenger's office.
Speaker 1: Hoffman was going outside the secretive Queensland health system by
Speaker 1: approaching a local parliamentarian. She didn't know if he could
Speaker 1: be trusted. She didn't know if he would believe her.
Speaker 1: Her anxiety mounted as the familiar scenery flew by. She
Speaker 1: felt sadness, anger, fear and tension. After Jayan Pttel's boastful
Speaker 1: announcement that his contract at the hospital had been extended,
Speaker 1: Hoffman and the nurses who supported her felt helpless. She
Speaker 1: had made up her mind to ring Messenger to set
Speaker 1: up an appointment afterwards, reflecting on what she had briefly
Speaker 1: told him in that first tentative telephone conversation, she feared
Speaker 1: that Rob Messenger would believe she was unhinged. She confided
Speaker 1: her plan to Karen Fox, telling.
Speaker 2: Her, you know, I'm ringing him up and saying patients
Speaker 2: are dying at the hospital and he's probably thinking this
Speaker 2: woman's crazy. This can't be happening, but it is happening.
Speaker 1: Messenger's staff had gone home. By the time Tony Hoffman
Speaker 1: arrived about five point thirty pm at Chop seven Bagara Plaza.
Speaker 1: Her makeup was streaked by tears. He sat her down
Speaker 1: with a mini recorder, his preferred tool when receiving sensitive
Speaker 1: complaints from constituents or sources. You could never be too
Speaker 1: careful in the cut and thrust of Queensland politics. You
Speaker 1: to state your name, please, Messenger started like a copper
Speaker 1: conducting a record of interview with a criminal, except his
Speaker 1: delivery was gentle and patient.
Speaker 3: Tony Hoffman, Tony, do you want to claim whistleblower status?
Speaker 1: Messenger hoped that the nurse would seek the limited protection
Speaker 1: afforded to public servants making a serious disclosure to a
Speaker 1: local politician.
Speaker 3: Yes, have you come to me because you believe that
Speaker 3: doctor Patel is incompetent in killing people?
Speaker 1: Yes?
Speaker 2: Yes I do.
Speaker 1: There it was done. She would not turn back now
Speaker 1: for the next ninety minutes. Hoffman let Messenger know the
Speaker 1: entire dreadful story. Messenger asked her if she was fearful.
Speaker 2: She replied, I guess I'm more distressed than scared, because
Speaker 2: I've watched patients sty I feel that every time I
Speaker 2: see him walk in the unit, I feel sick because
Speaker 2: I just think, who's going to kill an?
Speaker 1: Now?
Speaker 4: What's it going to do?
Speaker 1: Now?
Speaker 2: And we all feel like that. All of the nurses
Speaker 2: feel like that, they feel physically ill when he walks
Speaker 2: in because they just know that he's going to try
Speaker 2: and interfere with something, operate on someone, cause more of
Speaker 2: a problem and a complication, or stop a transfer which
Speaker 2: has been arranged. He says he trained in the United States.
Speaker 2: We did a search on the net because there's a
Speaker 2: site there that you can look up physicians qualifications, and
Speaker 2: it says that he trained in India in nineteen seventy
Speaker 2: three and that he has a general qualification. He continually
Speaker 2: tells us all sorts of things, like he's been a
Speaker 2: trauma surgeon for twenty five years and that he's been
Speaker 2: a cardiothoracic surgeon for about fifteen years. He seems to
Speaker 2: have a new qualification every time he talks about it,
Speaker 2: but we've not seen any of that. He also stated
Speaker 2: he studied medicine who's only fifteen years old. So you know,
Speaker 2: like we sort of don't believe very much what he
Speaker 2: says because you know, it's just impossible.
Speaker 1: Messenger wanted to know about the culture of the hospital.
Speaker 1: He had his views about how a moribund or incompetent
Speaker 1: management might be impotent to act against a dangerous doctor.
Speaker 1: Those views were about to be strongly reinforced.
Speaker 2: I think of all the places I've worked, Jim, I've
Speaker 2: never worked in a place like this. There's bullying, intimidation.
Speaker 2: You can't trust that anybody is going to tell the truth.
Speaker 2: The nurses hold the hospital together, and there's some great doctors,
Speaker 2: but these few people hold the hospital together, and the
Speaker 2: district manager takes the credit for it.
Speaker 1: Messengers quietly effective interviewing style had been honed as a
Speaker 1: commentator behind the microphone in the local ABC radio studios.
Speaker 3: You say, in some of that literature that I've read,
Speaker 3: doctor Patel insists on keeping patients longer than what the
Speaker 3: unit is equipped to keep. Can you explain that?
Speaker 1: Well?
Speaker 2: As I said, we only keep patients for twenty four
Speaker 2: to forty eight hours, we do try and keep them
Speaker 2: for longer, and we often do keep them for longer,
Speaker 2: and we substitute our staffing with overtime. But Dr Pitateell
Speaker 2: refused to transfer his patients to Brisbane. He said he
Speaker 2: wasn't going to practice medicine like that, and he would
Speaker 2: go up to Doctor Keating and throw a tantrum and
Speaker 2: say he was leaving or resigning, or just refuse to
Speaker 2: transfer them out. Sometimes we would have a bed in
Speaker 2: Brisbane for a patient, especially if they were quite sick,
Speaker 2: and then Dr Pittell would stop the transfer, and then
Speaker 2: we would lose the bed because Brisbane would need the bed.
Speaker 2: For someone else, so he consistently would interfere and stop
Speaker 2: the patients from being transferred to Brisbane, which caused enormous
Speaker 2: problems for us as nurses. I mean, we were continually
Speaker 2: putting people on overtime. It blew out our budget for
Speaker 2: the first time in four years because we had patients.
Speaker 2: We kept patients for so long. And the thing is
Speaker 2: the patients weren't getting the care that they needed anyway,
Speaker 2: because he's not a good doctor. The complication rate was
Speaker 2: so high that all these patients all had huge complications
Speaker 2: that weren't being addressed properly. What we've tried to do
Speaker 2: through Queensland Health is go through the right channels and
Speaker 2: address this properly, but it doesn't seem to have worked.
Speaker 2: I've come to you because I guess as the last resort,
Speaker 2: because we didn't know what else to do. I mean,
Speaker 2: I'm here not only as a representative for my own concerns,
Speaker 2: but I'm here representing the concerns of a lot of
Speaker 2: people who were too scared to come. We've been told
Speaker 2: that we're not allowed to come and see you. We
Speaker 2: literally are at the point where we are just about
Speaker 2: throwing ourselves over the top of the patients to protect
Speaker 2: them from this man, you know, and this is just crazy,
Speaker 2: It's just ridiculous. This is two and this should not
Speaker 2: be happening.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: We've got this code of conduct that exists in Queen's
Speaker 2: on Health and we're supposed to have all these things
Speaker 2: that protect us and the patients in place, and nothing's working.
Speaker 2: And that's why I guess I'm here. I'm asking you,
Speaker 2: who has nothing to do with the hospital whatsoever, to
Speaker 2: try and do something to save these patients from this man.
Speaker 2: We don't know what to do or where to go, Like,
Speaker 2: who else can we tell? You know, we joked about
Speaker 2: it the other day and said what else can we do?
Speaker 2: Strip naked and hang from the tree outside the red
Speaker 2: Rooster and scream out to Bunderberg, this is what's happening
Speaker 2: at the hospital. So this is what I hope that
Speaker 2: he gets stood down while there's a proper investigation done.
Speaker 1: It was dark outside, still pouring with rain. It was
Speaker 1: almost seven point thirty pm. Messenger had everything he needed.
Speaker 1: It was sensational, more powerful than any of the information
Speaker 1: brought to him in the past by people wronged by
Speaker 1: the hospital where his mother had given birth. To him
Speaker 1: where his mother died. There was something else, perhaps serendipity. Whatever.
Speaker 1: It was a year to the day since his maiden
Speaker 1: speech in State Parliament, when he pledged to campaign on health.
Speaker 1: He had ended the speech with a comment about evil
Speaker 1: prospering while good men remained silent. Now he wanted to
Speaker 1: shout the Betel disaster from the rooftops, he reassured Hoffman.
Speaker 1: The desperate woman, a lifetime Labor Party loyalist who had
Speaker 1: not voted for Messenger and had never supported his National Party,
Speaker 1: looked a wreck from worry and sleeplessness. Okay, we'll leave
Speaker 1: it there. I know what to do. Hoffman eyed the
Speaker 1: dark rain streaked windows and sighed as she prepared to
Speaker 1: go back at into the storm. Chapter thirty Political Football
Speaker 1: nineteen to twenty two March two thousand and five. In
Speaker 1: a booming electorate that few expected him to hold after
Speaker 1: his surprise two thousand and four triumph, Rob Messenger was
Speaker 1: run off his feet. The needs and expectations of working
Speaker 1: class families and sea change for tirees were constant. He
Speaker 1: and his constituents were fortunate. Messenger had great stamina, patience,
Speaker 1: a methodical personality, and dedicated staff. He had been shaken
Speaker 1: by the intensity of the secret meeting with Tony Hoffman
Speaker 1: and her shocking revelations. The documentation she handed to him
Speaker 1: was extensive and worrying. It corroborated her motive story. He
Speaker 1: had been told by too many staff and patients that
Speaker 1: Bunderberg Based Hospital was a house of horrors. He had
Speaker 1: witnessed his own mother's battle with cancer there. He intuitively
Speaker 1: knew often was right, but he had to play it safe.
Speaker 1: A bad call now could stall his political career within
Speaker 1: his own beleagued National Party. One or two colleagues envied
Speaker 1: his increasing popularity. They would not mind seeing him trip up.
Speaker 1: His speeches and press releases highlighting the problems at the
Speaker 1: hospital were routinely used against him by the Labour Party's
Speaker 1: Nisa Cunningham, the elected representative for the adjoining seat, for
Speaker 1: hammering the local hospital and revealing its ills. He was
Speaker 1: regularly accused of demoralizing the staff and worsening the problems.
Speaker 1: If he publicly took on the director of surgery would
Speaker 1: be picking his biggest fight. Yet it was conceivable that
Speaker 1: the man would resign. A messenger knew this, who would
Speaker 1: be around to repair the worn out knees perform the
Speaker 1: colonoscopies cut away the cancer, and if Patel were not
Speaker 1: as bad as Hoffman claimed, the community would be up
Speaker 1: in arms. If Messenger forced an innocent surgeon out of
Speaker 1: the hospital, the politician's head would be on the chopping
Speaker 1: block and the voters would lop it off pronto. After
Speaker 1: asking his staff to transcribe the record of his interview
Speaker 1: with Tony Hoffman, he went to the country town of
Speaker 1: Calliope and then to Gladstone on the coast for National
Speaker 1: Party business. By Sunday evening, when he checked for email,
Speaker 1: every word of his conversation with Hoffman two days prior
Speaker 1: was at his fingertips. He read it again on his
Speaker 1: computer screen, shaking his head at the seriousness of it all.
Speaker 1: As he rolled the text, he spoke to Mike Koran,
Speaker 1: the reliable parliamentarian from too Womba, west of Brisbane. Hawan
Speaker 1: had been a health minister in a former coalition government.
Speaker 1: He listened intently to Rob Messenger's version of the meeting
Speaker 1: with Hoffman. Mike Koran gravely told the young understudy he
Speaker 1: had a duty to act with urgency before meeting his
Speaker 1: political colleagues to explain the bombshell and work out a
Speaker 1: strategy on how best to drop it. Messenger called doctor
Speaker 1: Martin Strawn, a highly qualified physician in Bunderberg. Strawn was
Speaker 1: known to Messenger. In the confidential October two thousand and
Speaker 1: four memo which Tony Hoffman had written to Peter let
Speaker 1: setting out the concerns over Patel. She specifically related one
Speaker 1: of her conversations with Strawn. It followed the death of
Speaker 1: des Bramich rob Messenger read the passage in the memo again.
Speaker 2: After the patient's death. When I thought he had safely
Speaker 2: been transferred to Brisbane, doctor Strawn came to talk to
Speaker 2: me in the office and found me very distressed. He
Speaker 2: offered to talk to some of the other doctors and
Speaker 2: get back to me as a representative of the AMA
Speaker 2: in Bunderberg. He did this. He stated, there is widespread concern,
Speaker 2: but at the moment no one is willing to stick
Speaker 2: their neck out. He urged me to keep stats on
Speaker 2: my concerns.
Speaker 1: Messenger dialed Strawn's number. It was a confidential query, Messenger
Speaker 1: explained to the doctor, before candidly revealing how he had
Speaker 1: received statements and information about Patel and the serious concerns
Speaker 1: over his competence. He asked Strawn, a dry humored Seventh
Speaker 1: Day Adventist who disliked unhealthy habits like smoking and drinking,
Speaker 1: about the chain smoking wine loving incompetent surgeon. Did other
Speaker 1: doctors at the hospital, all the visiting medical officers who
Speaker 1: had contact with Patel and his patients share the concerns
Speaker 1: about the director of surgery. Rob Messenger wanted to know.
Speaker 1: Martin Strawn replied, yes, I know about doctor Patel. We
Speaker 1: think he's going to resign in June, and we'd like
Speaker 1: this matter to go away quietly. However, if this man
Speaker 1: was to stay on for another twelve months, we'd have
Speaker 1: serious concerns. The response flawed. Rob Messenger, knowing that the
Speaker 1: matters were under review by Queensland Health Doctor Martin Strawn,
Speaker 1: a former secretary and president of the Bunderberg and District
Speaker 1: Local Medical Association, urged the politician not to go public
Speaker 1: with the issue. If Messenger outed Patel, Strawn added, every
Speaker 1: patient who had been operated on by the director of
Speaker 1: surgery would be anxious. Messenger found this attitude hard to comprehend,
Speaker 1: and later he would be furious. Martin Strawn was effectively
Speaker 1: corroborating the story about Patel being dangerous. Messenger did not
Speaker 1: know what was worse, the confirmation or the reluctance of
Speaker 1: the doctors to act. He decided to smash their protective nexus.
Speaker 1: If nobody said anything and Patell left quietly, he would
Speaker 1: wreak more damage at the next hospital he went to.
Speaker 1: Rob Messenger became excited and a little apprehensive as his
Speaker 1: opportunity to go public with the scandal learned. He planned
Speaker 1: to rely on parliamentary privilege, the protection afforded elected politicians.
Speaker 1: It permitted him to speak without fear of legal retribution.
Speaker 1: It was a permanent immunity. He would get his chance soon.
Speaker 1: On twenty two March, State Parliament would convene for then
Speaker 1: even sitting day of two thousand and five. Messenger began
Speaker 1: rehearsing his questions. The plan he had developed in the
Speaker 1: political party room would be a double act to reinforce
Speaker 1: the seriousness of the issue and lend support. The party's
Speaker 1: shadow Health Minister, Stuart Copeland would join in. In that way,
Speaker 1: it would be harder for the media or the minister
Speaker 1: to write it off as the baseless outpourings of an
Speaker 1: inexperienced politician suffering relevance deprivation syndrome. The day began unpromisingly
Speaker 1: for Messenger. As he took his seat on the opposition benches,
Speaker 1: waited for the moment of truth, and mentally reworked his speech.
Speaker 1: He was jolted to attention. At nine thirty a m.
Speaker 1: The Speaker of Parliament, Ray Hollis, went to his grand chair.
Speaker 1: The journalists in the gallery above milled around with notepads
Speaker 1: as media officers handed out press releases and briefing notes.
Speaker 1: But already one of the Beatty government's more experienced headkickers
Speaker 1: was on his feet, accusing Rob Messenger of line. Robert Schwarten,
Speaker 1: the Minister for Public Works, Housing and Racing, put the
Speaker 1: boot in. The issue turned on claims of bungling over
Speaker 1: the installation of air conditioners in a Bunderberg public school.
Speaker 1: Messenger had raised it in Parliament a fortnight earlier, and
Speaker 1: now Rob Schwarten was questioning his honesty.
Speaker 5: Schwarten funded, it is important that honorable members in this
Speaker 5: Parliament reflect accurately the facts and not mislead the house.
Speaker 1: If it was a preemptive attack with the specific aim
Speaker 1: of undermining Messenger's credibility, before he went public with Patel.
Speaker 1: It meant something had leaked. It would indicate a plot
Speaker 1: or a setup. The parliamentary session that morning featured the
Speaker 1: usual verbal fisticuffs between members of the opposition and those
Speaker 1: of the Betty government. Emergency Services Minister Chris Cummins was wounded. Cummins,
Speaker 1: one of the lightweights in cabinet, was exposed by National
Speaker 1: Party leader Lawrence Springborg for trying to dodge payment of
Speaker 1: parking fines. Liddy Clark, the former ABC Play School presenter
Speaker 1: who had been sacked after a brief stint as Indigenous
Speaker 1: Affairs Minister, resented Springborg for describing her as less than truthful.
Speaker 1: She called him an absolute grub. Beattie sang the praises
Speaker 1: of the smart state of Queensland, and he trumpeted that
Speaker 1: Queensland's public hospital waiting times for elective surgery were the
Speaker 1: best in Australia. Health Minister Gordon Nuttle pledged improvements at
Speaker 1: the crisis torn John Tong Center, where thousands of forensic
Speaker 1: samples needed urgently by police and the courts were awaiting
Speaker 1: scrutiny by too few overwork signed. It was a story
Speaker 1: I had been writing after a helpful leak from the
Speaker 1: embattled staff. There, Rob Messenger tents as Stuart Copeland stood
Speaker 1: and spoke.
Speaker 6: My question is to the Minister for Health. I refer
Speaker 6: to the fact finding process conducted by doctor Fitzgerald, the
Speaker 6: Chief Health Officer, into serious allegations made about the clinical
Speaker 6: and surgical competence of doctor Patel, a surgeon operating at
Speaker 6: Bunderberg based Hospital. The allegations involve approximately fourteen patients who
Speaker 6: have suffered serious post operative complications, including death, following surgery
Speaker 6: performed by doctor Patel. As the findings of the process
Speaker 6: have not been released publicly to date, and to ensure
Speaker 6: that first class patient care is provided at Bunderberg Based Hospital,
Speaker 6: will the Minister now release these findings. Will the Minister
Speaker 6: have the allegation independently investigated. Will doctor Patel be stood
Speaker 6: aside while he is under investigation?
Speaker 1: Health Minister Nuttle, who had no idea what Stewart Copeland
Speaker 1: was talking about, try it a stalling tactic.
Speaker 4: In relation to the issues raised by the honorable member,
Speaker 4: they are matters for the Medical Board. I'm not aware
Speaker 4: of the issues raised by the honorable Member. I am
Speaker 4: more than happy as the Minister responsible to investigate those matters.
Speaker 4: I will meet with the CEO of the Medical Board
Speaker 4: today and speak with him about those issues. I'm more
Speaker 4: than happy to give the member the details of what
Speaker 4: I find out from the CEO of the Medical Board.
Speaker 1: Mike Horan, a parliamentary ally to Messenger, exploded, you should
Speaker 1: have known about this. There were deaths a one hundred
Speaker 1: percent strike rate. By noon, Rob Messenger was ready for
Speaker 1: his speaking part on Patel. He wanted to make sure
Speaker 1: no misunderstood the significance for.
Speaker 7: The protection of patients at the Bunderberg Base Hospital Intensive
Speaker 7: Care Unit and the well being of the medical staff.
Speaker 7: I make public and table a letter from the Nurse
Speaker 7: Unit manager of the Bunderberg Base Hospital ICU. This letter
Speaker 7: alleges serious concerns relating to the behavior and the clinical
Speaker 7: competence of doctor Patel, an overseas trained surgeon working at
Speaker 7: the Bunderberg Base Hospital ICU. The letter, submitted to the
Speaker 7: management of the Bunderberg Base Hospital on or around the
Speaker 7: twenty second of October two thousand and four, lists the
Speaker 7: cases of approximately fourteen former patients of the Bunderberg Base
Speaker 7: Hospital ICU, who the writer believed required formal investigations. I
Speaker 7: am astounded that the Minister for Health, as witnessed by
Speaker 7: his reply this morning to a question without notice from
Speaker 7: the Shadow Health Minister, was ignorant of the investigation.
Speaker 1: Again, reading aloud paragraphs of Hoffman's October two thousand and
Speaker 1: four letter to Peter Leck, he emphasized how doctor Petel
Speaker 1: was feared by nursing and medical staff as very powerful,
Speaker 1: and that anyone who tried to alert the authorities about
Speaker 1: their concerns would lose their jobs. Messenger issued a plea
Speaker 1: to Gordon Nuttle to release the findings of Chief Health
Speaker 1: Officer Jerry Fitzgerald's clinical audit report and start a thorough
Speaker 1: review of the entire hospital and its administration.
Speaker 7: I challenged the Minister to guarantee that all staff members
Speaker 7: who choose to give evidence be afforded full whistleblower status
Speaker 7: and that they be protected from any vindictive administrative action
Speaker 7: pending the results of this investigation. The Minister must immediately
Speaker 7: stand aside and suspend from work surgeon doctor Patel and
Speaker 7: senior administrative staff Peter Leck and doctor Darren Keating the
Speaker 7: staff of the Bunderberg Base Hospital ICU are desperate.
Speaker 1: After Rob Messenger sat down the Liberal leader Bob Quinn
Speaker 1: lamented a government that does nothing to address emerging problems
Speaker 1: until those problems become full blown crises. Health, according to
Speaker 1: Bob Quinn, was one of those crises. Malcolm Cole, the
Speaker 1: Courier Mal's political correspondent, was on the telephone and the
Speaker 1: Parliamentary Press gallery. He half heard the attack launched by
Speaker 1: Rob Messenger, whose credibility was yet to be proved to
Speaker 1: some of the journalists covering politics. We'll need to file
Speaker 1: on this, Malcolm said to his colleague Grocemary Odgers. She
Speaker 1: too had heard the attack. Odg just doubted the veracity
Speaker 1: of the story. Still, the Courier Mail was the paper
Speaker 1: of record, she decided to write a few paragraphs. Behind
Speaker 1: the scenes, the political machinery began to move. By the
Speaker 1: time Rob Messenger had finished his parliamentary sprat, Gordon Nuttle
Speaker 1: was close to having a ministerial meltdown for being left
Speaker 1: out of the loop by his top departmental staff. He
Speaker 1: furiously ordered his staff to find the Chief Health Officer
Speaker 1: and demand answers fast. So much for the policy of
Speaker 1: no surprises. Gordon Nuttle seed as he relived the embarrassment
Speaker 1: of being ambushed by Stuart Copeland and Rob Messenger.
Speaker 4: He demanded what is going on at Bunderberg Hospital.
Speaker 1: Paul dal Alba, the senior Departmental liaison officer, telephoned Jerry
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald and explain the questions that had been asked in Parliament.
Speaker 1: At ten fifty three am, dal Alba emailed the Chief
Speaker 1: Health Officer.
Speaker 8: Mister Copeland stated that you were investigating post operative complications
Speaker 8: and asked if the Minister would release the report and
Speaker 8: suspend doctor Patel. Can you please provide some dot points
Speaker 8: by return email to allow the Director General to verbally
Speaker 8: brief them Minister this afternoon. We may then need to
Speaker 8: organize a parliamentary question time brief for tomorrow so the
Speaker 8: Minister can respond to the question in parliament.
Speaker 1: Dal Alba was ordered to summon Fitzgerald to a six
Speaker 1: pm meeting with Gordon Nuttle at Room A three to
Speaker 1: seven in Parliament House.
Speaker 8: Glenna Viner will meet you at the main entrance to
Speaker 8: Parliament House.
Speaker 1: Dalle Alba asked David Potter, the media manager for Gordon Nuttle,
Speaker 1: to transmit the Parliamentary Hansard transcript and the statements tabled
Speaker 1: by Messenger to Queensland Helps two media managers Lisa Schildtz
Speaker 1: and Phil Nickerson. Peter Leck was also to receive the material.
Speaker 1: Paranoid about the probable media interest, dal Alba then briefed Schiltz,
Speaker 1: Nickerson and another public relations flack, Paul Michaels.
Speaker 8: Due to the nature of the statements made, it is
Speaker 8: likely that media attention will result. The Director General has
Speaker 8: advised that Queensland Health response should be along the following lines.
Speaker 8: District Manager has sought assistance in evaluating the appropriateness of
Speaker 8: surgical services at Bunderberg. This review is underway and Queensland
Speaker 8: Health will consider recommendations when complete.
Speaker 1: In his naturally disarming manner, Chief Health Officer Jerry Fitzgerald
Speaker 1: explained to Steve Buckland, the Director General of Queensland Health,
Speaker 1: the background to the Bunderberg udit and its preliminary indications
Speaker 1: of Patel's competence. The Chief Health Officer told Buckland.
Speaker 5: He's not as good as some, but he's not as
Speaker 5: bad as others.
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald, who was waiting on comparative figures for wound breakdowns,
Speaker 1: complications and organ injuries, confirmed that Jayon Pateel had a
Speaker 1: high infection rate and attempted too many complex procedures. He
Speaker 1: hoped to finalize his report in the next forty eight hours. Already, however,
Speaker 1: Jerry Fitzgerald should have been alarmed by some of the findings.
Speaker 1: One stood out. Too many patients had suffered bile duct
Speaker 1: injuries after routine surgery by Patel. The procedure laparoscopic colos
Speaker 1: systectomy involves the removal of the gall bladder via tubes
Speaker 1: inserted through small incisions in the abdominal war. It is
Speaker 1: a common and uncomplicated operation for people in pain from gallstones.
Speaker 1: Before Patel arrived at the hospital, the rate of bile
Speaker 1: duct injury was zero. Over the ensuing eighteen months, Patel's
Speaker 1: patients appeared to have suffered bile duct injuries at an
Speaker 1: alarming rate twenty eight times the national average for someone
Speaker 1: supposedly as experienced and senior as the director of surgery.
Speaker 1: It was horrendous. At his desk, Jerry Fitzgerald produced a
Speaker 1: document for the Minister, Gordon Nuttle, to rely on if
Speaker 1: he were asked more questions by Rob Messenger. The first
Speaker 1: part of the document was confidential and not for public release.
Speaker 5: It told Nuttle procedures have been performed at Bunderberg, which
Speaker 5: are beyond the capacity and facilities of the Bunderberg Hospital.
Speaker 5: The significant issue regarding the competency of doctor Patel appears
Speaker 5: to relate to his preparedness to take on cases which
Speaker 5: are beyond the capacity of the Bunderberg Hospital and possibly
Speaker 5: beyond his personal capacity. There is no evidence that his
Speaker 5: general surgical skills are inappropriate or incompetent.
Speaker 1: The Chief Health Officer prepared the second part of the
Speaker 1: document for public release under the heading suggested response. He
Speaker 1: hopefully provided a page of points setting them out so
Speaker 1: they would sound like Nuttle's handiwork should he read the
Speaker 1: page in parliament. To fend off Messenger, it stated.
Speaker 4: I have now been informed of concerns raised by staff
Speaker 4: at the Bunderberg Hospital in regard to some general surgical
Speaker 4: services provided at the hospital. The Chief Health Officer, Doctor
Speaker 4: Jerry Fitzgerald, has undertaken a review of clinical outcomes at
Speaker 4: the hospital and is currently finalizing his report. Doctor Fitzgerald
Speaker 4: has identified a number of issues of concern at the
Speaker 4: hospital and will be making recommendations in regard to those concerns.
Speaker 4: There is insufficient evidence at this time to take any
Speaker 4: particular action against any individual and to suspend anyone would
Speaker 4: be unjust and inappropriate. The Lunderberg Hospital has taken certain
Speaker 4: action to limit the scope of some general surgery performed
Speaker 4: at the hospital, which should address the majority of issues
Speaker 4: raised by staff. The report will also make recommendations regarding
Speaker 4: the management of staff conflict at the hospital. However, the
Speaker 4: report has also identified that there is a relatively high
Speaker 4: satisfaction amongst patients and at waiting times for elective surgery
Speaker 4: have been reduced considerably in recent times. Junior staff have
Speaker 4: been very complimentary in regard to the teaching and guidance
Speaker 4: provided to them. However, doctor Fitzgerald has raised concerns about
Speaker 4: the clinical judgment exercised by one member of staff and
Speaker 4: will be referring these concerns to the medical Board for consideration.
Speaker 1: Later in the day, after his documents had been emailed
Speaker 1: to dal Alba, the Chief Health Officer briefed Gordon Nuttle personally.
Speaker 1: Back in the office, I watched the six pm TV
Speaker 1: News which featured the silliness of Chris Cummins in his
Speaker 1: efforts to evade parking fines. My colleagues Des Howden and
Speaker 1: Jamie Walker, watching with me in the office, made jokes
Speaker 1: at Cummins's expense. Rob Messenger's revelations went unnoticed. Paul dal
Speaker 1: Alba knew the Bunderberg News Mail would run the Patel story.
Speaker 1: Peter Leck told him the Newsmail's reporter had a copy
Speaker 1: of the document Hoffman had compiled in October two thousand
Speaker 1: and four when she detailed the Patel concerns and the
Speaker 1: bad outcomes for patients, Chapter thirty one, Natural Justice. Twenty
Speaker 1: three March two thousand and five, Bunderberg's Newsmail had a
Speaker 1: splash headline on its front page, Truck off Bridge. The
Speaker 1: news report described how a fifty six year old man
Speaker 1: who survived a five meter fall in his truck and
Speaker 1: then two hours trapped in the cabin was very, very lucky.
Speaker 1: Rob Messenger had tipped off the Newsmail's Dan Nancarrow about
Speaker 1: the Jayant Patel allegations. The young reporter's two articles were
Speaker 1: relegated to page five under the heading taking an in
Speaker 1: depth look at issues of interest to people in our area.
Speaker 1: Peter Leck had told Nan Caro.
Speaker 9: It is important doctor Batel receives natural justice and he's
Speaker 9: given the opportunity to respond to any allegations that have
Speaker 9: been made.
Speaker 1: In the Courier Mail. The story barely rated mension, just
Speaker 1: a brief summary under the heading fast news. Blink and
Speaker 1: you would have missed it. I saw the item while
Speaker 1: scanning the newspaper at home. When I went to work
Speaker 1: and logged onto the parliamentary website, I felt distinctly uneasy.
Speaker 1: I pointed the item out to the Courier Mail's news editor,
Speaker 1: Graham Lloyd. I told him that I believed we had
Speaker 1: seriously underplayed the story. I said, look at the allegations
Speaker 1: an incompetent surgeon whose patients are dying. It all came
Speaker 1: out in Parliament. I told Graham Lloyd of my earlier
Speaker 1: contact with a concerned nurse. I explained how I had
Speaker 1: wanted to launch a proper investigation when a yellow A
Speaker 1: four envelope containing several statements arrived a few weeks earlier,
Speaker 1: but I had been unable to see my way clear
Speaker 1: of other stories. Lloyd knew what to do. He said
Speaker 1: he would ask Ryan Heffernan, a tenacious newsroom colleague, to
Speaker 1: follow the story. In the meantime, when Gordon Nuttle spoke
Speaker 1: in State Parliament at ten twenty am, he went on
Speaker 1: the front foot describing Rob Messinger as totally irresponsible for
Speaker 1: airing the Betel matters while Jerry Fitzgerald's clinical audit was incomplete.
Speaker 1: Rob Messenger, according to Health Minister Nuttle, had circumvented all
Speaker 1: natural justice processes to vilify a health professional.
Speaker 4: I can tell the House that some of the allegations
Speaker 4: made by the Member for Burnett not only inaccurate, but
Speaker 4: could also be considered deliberately misleading. Should any issues be
Speaker 4: raised regarding the professional performance of an individual clinician as
Speaker 4: a result of the clinical audit into surgical Services, these
Speaker 4: will be referred to the Medical Board to be investigated.
Speaker 4: I am advised that at the conclusion of the audit
Speaker 4: of Surgical Services, the Director General will refer any outstanding
Speaker 4: issues which are appropriate to the powers and function of
Speaker 4: the Medical Board to that board.
Speaker 1: The incomplete response from Nuttle omitted Fitzgerald's own advice that
Speaker 1: he had formed concerns over Patel's clinical judgment, despite everything
Speaker 1: the nurses had told Jerry Fitzgerald, despite the figures showing
Speaker 1: the remarkable complication rates, despite the failure of the Bunderberg
Speaker 1: Hospital administration to ensure that Patel had been credentialed. The
Speaker 1: Director of surgery was still safe. He was still operating,
Speaker 1: still being given the benefit of the doubt. When Tony
Speaker 1: Hoffman saw doctor Martin Strawn in the intensive care unit,
Speaker 1: he told her, you'll be lucky to keep your job
Speaker 1: after this. As the hospital seethed with rumors, Martin Strawn
Speaker 1: also visited Peter Leck, divulging the telephone call he had
Speaker 1: received from Rob Messenger. Strawn told Leck that no doctor
Speaker 1: would have stooped so low in leaking details about a
Speaker 1: fellow medical practitioner to a parliamentarian. The clear implication was
Speaker 1: that the culprit must be a nurse. Strawn, who already
Speaker 1: suspected Hoffman, also tipped off Lek about something Rob Messenger
Speaker 1: had indicated that the information was leaked to him by
Speaker 1: a nurse. Doctor Patel, who had been briefed by Lek
Speaker 1: about the outcry in Distant Brisbane, past Hoffman in the
Speaker 1: corridor and stared straight ahead. He was full of swagger
Speaker 1: and confidence as he walked to the operating theater to
Speaker 1: wield the scalpel again. One of his patients that day
Speaker 1: would suffer an avoidable complication. Gail Almer considered Patel's rhinoceros
Speaker 1: thick hide she would have had a grudging respect for
Speaker 1: the man so stoic in the face of adversity, had
Speaker 1: she not already decided he was a psychopathic narcissist. With
Speaker 1: Lynda Mulligan away on holidays, the acting director of nursing,
Speaker 1: Diane Walls, was in the hot seat. She called a
Speaker 1: meeting of the staff of the intensive care unit. Tony
Speaker 1: Hoffman had devoured the brief reports in the newsmail and
Speaker 1: fretted over the lack of attention by the courier mail.
Speaker 1: When she heard of the upcoming meeting, she felt her
Speaker 1: worries and fears easing. Hoffman had a message for the
Speaker 1: other nurses.
Speaker 2: We're going to be supported now. Everything will be fine.
Speaker 1: She called in those nurses who were on days off.
Speaker 1: Hoffman wanted all who had joined her in raising concerns
Speaker 1: to come in to receive the support from management. After
Speaker 1: Hoffman and nurses Karen Jenner, Jan Marks, Karen Fox, and
Speaker 1: Vivian Tapiolas went to the tea room in ICU, Diane
Speaker 1: Walls arrived with Peter Leck. The district manager, was visibly
Speaker 1: furious as he waived around documentation and spoke of the
Speaker 1: severe consequences of leaks the nurses believed that the papers
Speaker 1: he held were sections of the Health Services Act and
Speaker 1: the Code of Conduct, setting out the penalty of two
Speaker 1: years imprisonment for staff who leaked information. The official jargon states.
Speaker 10: In the course of their work, health service staff come
Speaker 10: in contact with information that must be kept confidential at
Speaker 10: all times. All employees are reminded that irresponsible discussion of
Speaker 10: any matters regarding the health services facilities, staff, and most importantly,
Speaker 10: the patience, is regarded as an offense.
Speaker 9: I'm appalled.
Speaker 1: Leck repeatedly condemned the handover of statements to Rob Messenger,
Speaker 1: saying very high sources had confirmed that it came from
Speaker 1: an ICU staffer.
Speaker 9: I have good information as to who this person is.
Speaker 1: Peter Leck added that the leaker had brought shame to
Speaker 1: the hospital. Tony Hoffman was paralyzed with shock and fear.
Speaker 1: She had only told one person, Karen Fox, about her
Speaker 1: meeting with Rob Messenger. Lex's claim to know the source
Speaker 1: was almost as worrying as his failure to address the
Speaker 1: issues of patients dying unnecessarily. Did politicians operate? Hoffman wondered
Speaker 1: was it all a big game? Did they just rat
Speaker 1: on their sources when Lek claimed that the airing of
Speaker 1: the Betel issues had caused a rift between the medical
Speaker 1: and nursing staff. Karen Jenner was astonished. In her two
Speaker 1: years as a nurse at the hospital, she had not
Speaker 1: met Lek until now. She could not recall him visiting
Speaker 1: the ICU. Shortly before the one thirty pm meeting, she
Speaker 1: had been told by Jan Marx that the Patel story
Speaker 1: was on the radio. Hoffman had worn several nurses that
Speaker 1: the media might try to contact those nurses whose names
Speaker 1: were on the document tabled in parliament. Karen Jenner, who
Speaker 1: hurriedly read the newsmail before going to the tea room,
Speaker 1: figured that Lek had come to give advice on dealing
Speaker 1: with any journalists who might call for comment. She expected
Speaker 1: his back, not a barrage of vitriol. There was no
Speaker 1: chance to ask him questions or put another side of
Speaker 1: the story. Immediately after the outburst, he got up and left.
Speaker 1: Karen Jennis said at the time.
Speaker 11: How dare he speak to us like that.
Speaker 1: Dianne Walls, who had no prior knowledge of the complaints
Speaker 1: and the depth of feeling in the Intensive care unit
Speaker 1: over Patel, told the nurses that management had spoken let
Speaker 1: it go now, she said. At two thirty pm, Peter
Speaker 1: Lek fronted another meeting in the conference room outside the
Speaker 1: executive officers. He berated the more senior nurses. This time
Speaker 1: Robin Pollock, the nurse in charge of the renal unit,
Speaker 1: learned by email that attendance was mandatory. She was a
Speaker 1: few minutes late. When she arrived, Lek was admonishing her colleagues.
Speaker 1: Pollock wanted to say that if management had handled this
Speaker 1: matter appropriately and dealt with the complaints about PTEL back
Speaker 1: when they were made, we wouldn't be in this position now.
Speaker 1: But Peter Leck's anger was intimidating for her. He said
Speaker 1: the leaker was a nurse. One of the nurses asked,
Speaker 1: are you sure. How do you know that? Peter Leck replied, I.
Speaker 9: Have it from a reliable source, but it is not
Speaker 9: just one source. I have two or three people that
Speaker 9: can verify it as a nurse.
Speaker 1: Nurse Gail Alma bridled at the accusatory tone in Lex's
Speaker 1: furious diatribe. She resented being blamed over the leak, and
Speaker 1: she felt powerless to defend herself and her colleagues. She
Speaker 1: feared a nurse would be made a scapegoat for the
Speaker 1: leak when the bigger issue was the lethal incompetence of
Speaker 1: a surgeon. What sort of mixed up management? Shot the
Speaker 1: messenger and ignored the message. Are you going to track
Speaker 1: this person down? One of the nurses asked Lek. Lek
Speaker 1: said something about that not being his immediate priority. At
Speaker 1: the end of the tirade, he stormed out. The afternoon
Speaker 1: was filled with tension to the nurses. Patel appeared unmoved,
Speaker 1: but the surgeon seized the opportunity to confront Lek and
Speaker 1: demanded his complete backing. Leck could see that Patel was
Speaker 1: incensed at the questioning of his competence. Unless you send
Speaker 1: a letter of support to the Bunderberg Newsmill in relation
Speaker 1: to my work, I will resign. The director of surgery
Speaker 1: pledged to quit within twenty four hours if he did
Speaker 1: not see signs of rock solid backing from management. Patel
Speaker 1: spoke about launching legal action against everyone involved in what
Speaker 1: he saw as a plot to oust him. When Lek
Speaker 1: could get a word in, he tried to placate Patel
Speaker 1: by apologizing. Despite his grave concerns about the surgeon's incompetence,
Speaker 1: Leck was worried about the need to continue working through
Speaker 1: the waiting lists. Later, Let gave an explanation to the
Speaker 1: senior departmental liaison officer Paul dal Alba.
Speaker 9: He acknowledges to support provided so far by myself, the
Speaker 9: minister and others, but once some further backing. I'm adviser
Speaker 9: doctor Pateell as the only general surgeon who will be
Speaker 9: in Bundenberg over the coming Easter weekend. His departure at
Speaker 9: this time would be critical to service delivery.
Speaker 1: Leck told his colleague that he found only one patient
Speaker 1: letter of complaint relating to doctor Pateell, from a family
Speaker 1: whose father was treated mainly by another surgeon. Peter Lex
Speaker 1: sent to Paul dal Alba a draft of the letter
Speaker 1: that he would soon dispatch to the news Mail.
Speaker 9: I refer to the article of March twenty three concerning
Speaker 9: allegations made against doctor J. Pettel. The fact that a
Speaker 9: number of alligators have been made public without completion of
Speaker 9: a review process designed to ensure the application of natural
Speaker 9: justice is reprehensible. At this time I received no advice
Speaker 9: indicating that the allegations have been substantiated. A range of
Speaker 9: systems are in place to monitor patient safety and the
Speaker 9: community can be assured that we are constantly working to
Speaker 9: improve our service delivery. Doctor Patel is an industrious surgeon
Speaker 9: who has spent many years working to improve the lives
Speaker 9: of ordinary people in both the United States and Australia.
Speaker 9: He deserves a fair go. Peter Leck, District Manager, Bunderberg
Speaker 9: Health Service District.
Speaker 1: A little while later, Leck went to the evening meeting
Speaker 1: of the district Health Council, which was part of a
Speaker 1: Queensland Health public relations exercise to pretend it was interested
Speaker 1: in the input of hand picked community members. Its chairman, Vivchase,
Speaker 1: who was cranky and in poor health with diabetes, received
Speaker 1: a nominal five hundred dollars a year to attend meetings.
Speaker 1: No longer wielded much influence, certainly nothing like when he
Speaker 1: was the local mayor, but this evening he was prepared
Speaker 1: to take a stand. Rob Messenger was at it again,
Speaker 1: running down the local hospital. Chase knew little about what
Speaker 1: was really going on in the hospital. Peelect simply did
Speaker 1: not bother briefing him on the sensitive issues. In his
Speaker 1: ignorance of the situation, Vivchase had become sick and tired
Speaker 1: of the constant carping by Messenger. As Joan Dooley, Lex's
Speaker 1: secretary took the minutes of the meeting, Leck gave an
Speaker 1: overview of the Patel issues. One of the members, Doctor
Speaker 1: Denise Powell, the president of the local Medical Association, briefed
Speaker 1: everyone on the media interest, including TV follow ups. Dr
Speaker 1: Powell stressed that the local medical community was standing behind Patel.
Speaker 1: There was no mistaking the mood of the meeting. Whatever
Speaker 1: the significance of the allegations, the patients ran a poor
Speaker 1: second to the interests of Batel. The meeting gave Powell
Speaker 1: the green light to speak to Rob Messenger. Perhaps a
Speaker 1: chat could reassure the Maverick parliamentarian or quieten him down,
Speaker 1: and everyone on the District Health Council was in favor
Speaker 1: of providing a letter of support to Patel. Chapter thirty two,
Speaker 1: Damage Control, twenty four March two thousand and five. Beryl
Speaker 1: Crosby is the type of down to earth person described
Speaker 1: by TV reporters and producers as great talent. Although unknown
Speaker 1: in the media world, she had a story that might
Speaker 1: make or break a ratings night for the nine networks,
Speaker 1: A current affair in its perennial war with sevens Today
Speaker 1: Tonight her story and picture on the front page of
Speaker 1: the News Mail and on an inside page of the Courier.
Speaker 1: Mail had excited Paul Ransley, Queensland chief of a current affair.
Speaker 1: The News Mail had reported it like this.
Speaker 10: Beryl Crosby was organizing her own funeral when she found
Speaker 10: out being diagnosed with cancer had been a medical mistake.
Speaker 10: Missus Crosby claims the doctor responsible was Jay aunt Petel,
Speaker 10: the man at the center of malpractice allegations read out
Speaker 10: in state Parliament by Member for Burnett Rob Messenger this week.
Speaker 4: I thought it was a one.
Speaker 1: Off case, Eryl Crosby said.
Speaker 10: I hope by not taking action back then, I didn't
Speaker 10: add to anyone else's grief.
Speaker 1: Paul Ransley, a former investigative journalist with the Sunday Program,
Speaker 1: hoped the morbidly fascinating story would beat whatever today Tonight
Speaker 1: might serve up. Its sharp new producer Karen Cooper was
Speaker 1: closing the gap in the ratings. Paul held an early
Speaker 1: morning phone conference with his counterparts in Sydney. They liked
Speaker 1: the angle. It was one of those back from the
Speaker 1: dead stories with universal appeal. Ramsley asked his veteran foot
Speaker 1: in the door reporter David Margan and a crew to
Speaker 1: rush to Bunderberg and interview Crosby. Crosby seemed excited as
Speaker 1: she did her first TV walk.
Speaker 10: Oh my god, it's like a friggin' movie.
Speaker 1: The crew needed footage of her strolling spelling the roses.
Speaker 1: It was part of the package. Beryl Crosby's transition from
Speaker 1: obscurity to public limelight had happened quickly. It started after
Speaker 1: her daughter saw the first day of local headlines about Patel.
Speaker 1: She called her mum and told her to buy the newspaper.
Speaker 1: Beryl sat transfixed as she read the brief stories. She
Speaker 1: wondered if her own brush with Patel was relevant. A
Speaker 1: sales representative who was between jobs, she plucked up the
Speaker 1: courage to call Rob Messenger's office at Bagara and she
Speaker 1: explained how Patel had treated her. She was told to
Speaker 1: expect a call from Messenger, who was still in Brisbane
Speaker 1: attending state Parliament. When Beryl Crosby explained how Patel had
Speaker 1: misdiagnosed cancer, Messenger cried. He still grieved for his mother.
Speaker 1: Just recalling her death at the hospital after a fight
Speaker 1: with cancer reduced him to tears. It was the moment
Speaker 1: Crosby decided that Rob Messinger was a good man. She
Speaker 1: felt she could trust him.
Speaker 7: When I come back out, I would love to come
Speaker 7: and see you.
Speaker 1: You should get a damn good lawyer and sue them
Speaker 1: for everything than god. Messenger was a pragmatist. He knew
Speaker 1: that Crossby's story would help to validate some of the
Speaker 1: concerns about Patel. It might also ease the pressure he
Speaker 1: was under for naming Patel in Parliament. He asked Crosby
Speaker 1: if she would do some media. He wanted her to
Speaker 1: tell her story to the newspaper and TV reporters. He
Speaker 1: offered to make the arrangements. A short time later, the
Speaker 1: crew from the News Mail arrived on Crosby's doorstep. My
Speaker 1: colleague Ryan Heffernan from the Courier Mail had also telephoned
Speaker 1: Beryl Crosby and that was just the start of the
Speaker 1: media interest. The print articles were like bait for the
Speaker 1: follow ups by a current affair and today tonight, the
Speaker 1: pressure on Patel, on his bosses in Bunderberg and the
Speaker 1: bureaucracy in Brisbane mounted with each new headline. Patel had
Speaker 1: it out with Peter Leck, again accusing the district manager
Speaker 1: of failing to rally robust support, Patel walked off in
Speaker 1: a rage.
Speaker 9: Dr Pateel has just resigned effective immediately.
Speaker 1: Leck wrote to Dan Bergen, the Queensland Health Zonal manager,
Speaker 1: and to Paul Michaels, one of their media advisors, just
Speaker 1: after lunch.
Speaker 9: He has indicated that he plans to take legal action
Speaker 9: against a variety of staff as well as Queensland Health
Speaker 9: for failing to stop the leak of confidential information and
Speaker 9: for not providing definitive support in relation to the allegations.
Speaker 9: There are no general surgeons in Bunderberg privately or publicly
Speaker 9: as from eight am this morning, except Dodor Bittel.
Speaker 1: As the media scrambled to reach Bunderberg, Jerry Fitzgerald, having
Speaker 1: received the data he needed to verify Petel's off the
Speaker 1: scale rate of complications, gave his final report to the
Speaker 1: Director General of Queensland Health, doctor Steve Buckland. They meant
Speaker 1: to talk about it the clinical order with carnage on
Speaker 1: a grand scale, yet it was written in such a
Speaker 1: way that the reader might not be immediately alarmed. Fitzgerald's
Speaker 1: report began like this.
Speaker 5: Bunderberg is a progressive, modern city with a population of
Speaker 5: forty four thousand, six hundred and seventy where residents are
Speaker 5: catered for with excellent shopping, medical services, education facilities, and
Speaker 5: a diversity of recreational pursuits and experiences, including the Coralisles
Speaker 5: coast and country.
Speaker 1: On page seven, the report states.
Speaker 5: In general, staff have enjoyed their work at Bunderberg Hospital
Speaker 5: and only recently have issues arisen which have caused concern. However,
Speaker 5: as well as raising concerns, some staff made complementary comments
Speaker 5: about the divisional director's commitment to teaching and mentoring of
Speaker 5: junior medical staff. In addition, there has been a significant
Speaker 5: improvement in efficiency, especially in the operating theater and in
Speaker 5: meeting elective surgery targets, with significant reductions in waiting times
Speaker 5: for surgery.
Speaker 1: Doctor Fitzgerald compiled the report with regard to what was
Speaker 1: known as a no blame protocol. Doctor Bateell's name did
Speaker 1: not even appear in the report. He was referred to
Speaker 1: by title, with comments such.
Speaker 5: As the Director of Surgery has high standards and this
Speaker 5: has led to some degree of conflict with staff.
Speaker 1: Only by reading between the lines and analyzing the figures
Speaker 1: on complications at the back of the report would have
Speaker 1: been possible to ascertain the seriousness of the matter, but
Speaker 1: as the report remained under a strict veil of secrecy,
Speaker 1: none of the patients or staff of the hospital would know.
Speaker 1: Steve Buckland, however, received an additional piece of advice. Doctor
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald had attached a confident memorandum to the report, and
Speaker 1: the memorandum was alarming for Buckland's eyes only.
Speaker 5: It stated in February this year, I was asked to
Speaker 5: undertake a clinical audit of general surgical services at Bunderberg Hospital.
Speaker 5: As you are aware, the events which trigger this audit
Speaker 5: have now been the subject of questions in Parliament. The
Speaker 5: report of the clinical audit is now complete and I
Speaker 5: have attached a copy to this memorandum. There are issues
Speaker 5: which I need to bring to your attention. There is
Speaker 5: evidence that the Director of Surgery at Bunderberg Hospital has
Speaker 5: a significantly higher surgical complication rate than the peer group rate.
Speaker 5: In addition, he appears to have undertaken types of surgery
Speaker 5: which in my view are beyond the capability of Bunderberg
Speaker 5: Hospital and possibly beyond his own skills and experience. Although
Speaker 5: his surgical competence has not been examined in detail, I
Speaker 5: believe his judgment both in undertaking these procedures and also
Speaker 5: delaying the transfer of patients to a higher level facility,
Speaker 5: is below that which is expected by Queensland Health. I
Speaker 5: would recommend that these matters should be examined by the
Speaker 5: Medical Board and have written to the Executive Officer, Mister
Speaker 5: Jimo Dempsey, bringing the matter to his attention. The audit
Speaker 5: report also identified that there has been a failure of
Speaker 5: systems at the hospital which has led to a delay
Speaker 5: in the resolution of these matters. The Credentials and Clinical
Speaker 5: Privileges Committee has not appropriately considered or credentialed the doctor concerned.
Speaker 5: The executive management team at the hospital does not appear
Speaker 5: to have responded in a timely or effective manner to
Speaker 5: the concerns raised by staff, some of which were raised
Speaker 5: over twelve months ago. While the report makes a number
Speaker 5: of recommendations for system improvements, I would recommend that some
Speaker 5: discussion should ocur with the hospital management, reminding them of
Speaker 5: their responsibilities to put such systems in place and ensure
Speaker 5: they respond appropriately to reasonable clinical quality concerns. Doctor Jerry Fitzgerald,
Speaker 5: Chief Health Officer, twenty fourth of March two thousand and five.
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald wrote also to the Medical Board's head GMO Dempsey,
Speaker 1: I wish to.
Speaker 5: Formally bring to your attention and seek assessment of the
Speaker 5: performance of doctor Giant Patel, who is the director of
Speaker 5: surgery at Bunderberg Hospital.
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald advised the Medical Board of Evidence that the outcomes
Speaker 1: of complex operations performed by Patel.
Speaker 5: Were relatively poor, with at least two of the patients
Speaker 5: dying in the immediate post operative period. In addition, data
Speaker 5: produced during the audit demonstrated a significantly higher rate of
Speaker 5: complications than the peer group average. However, we have not
Speaker 5: been able to exclude the impact of differential severity on
Speaker 5: this complication rate.
Speaker 1: But doctor Fitzgerald did not send his report to the
Speaker 1: Medical Board, nor did he send it to Peter leck
Speaker 1: in Bunderberg, and despite the preliminary findings, neither Buckland nor
Speaker 1: Fitzgerald considered suspending Patel based on what he knew at
Speaker 1: that time. Steve Buckland, the man in overall charge of
Speaker 1: all the hospitals and staff in Queensland Health, would not
Speaker 1: have permitted Patel to come near him with a scalpel,
Speaker 1: but Buckland's priority was to keep Patel operating. When Buckland
Speaker 1: spoke to Lek in the late afternoon, Patel was still
Speaker 1: threatening to sue everyone, including his employer. Patel also knew
Speaker 1: that without him there would be no surgeon on duty
Speaker 1: over the Easter break, when thousands of families would be
Speaker 1: on the roads. There were always smashes, broken and twisted,
Speaker 1: limbs damaged, organs. Hospital staff would be run off their feet,
Speaker 1: and the nightly news could be counted on to grimly
Speaker 1: update the road toll each evening it was the hospital's
Speaker 1: most critical time of need. By threatening to refuse to
Speaker 1: work unless certain conditions were met, Patel put Leck, who
Speaker 1: was not coping well under the pressure, into a state
Speaker 1: of dread. In his time of need, Patel was also
Speaker 1: being flattered by fellow doctors who rushed to defend him.
Speaker 1: Doctor keyes Nidham wrote a public declaration of support.
Speaker 11: I would have no hesitation of having this highly qualified
Speaker 11: surgeon operate on any member of my family or myself.
Speaker 1: Nightham regarded the primary role of newspapers to be the
Speaker 1: publisher of comics and his letters. Furious with the nurses,
Speaker 1: keyes Nidam, who was in the chair as acting director
Speaker 1: of medical services when Patel was first employed at the hospital,
Speaker 1: said he was vacillating between sadness and disgust over the
Speaker 1: public shaming. As president of the local Medical Association, Doctor
Speaker 1: Denise Powell was urged to show her support for Patel,
Speaker 1: and she said the organization felt he had made a
Speaker 1: positive contribution to the community in Brisbane. The big guns
Speaker 1: lined up against Messenger they had the politician in their sites.
Speaker 1: Doctor David mlloy, president of the Australian Medical Association's Queensland branch,
Speaker 1: said Patel had spent many years training and practicing in
Speaker 1: the United States. Doctor mlloy said.
Speaker 11: There is every probability that there was no negligence involved
Speaker 11: in the surgeon's practice, and the issue before the Medical
Speaker 11: Board mostly relates to the scope of surgery being completed
Speaker 11: in a country center. The opposition has acted irresponsibly by
Speaker 11: accusing a Bunderberg surgeon of professional incompetence in the interests
Speaker 11: of cheap political gain and perverting the course of justice.
Speaker 1: At five point twenty five pm, the relentless Rob Messenger
Speaker 1: launched another broadside in state Parliament against Gordon Nuttle, accusing
Speaker 1: the Minister of instructing his department to run Queensland Health
Speaker 1: with the pretend I am a mushroom approach.
Speaker 7: If we listen to the Minister, everything is rosy and
Speaker 7: fine with the Bunderberg Hospital. There are no shonky surgeons,
Speaker 7: no access block, no shortage of beds and no mental
Speaker 7: health crisis. And nurses and hospital employees are not being
Speaker 7: bullied or vilified by the administration. But the facts of
Speaker 7: the matter are quite different. I repeat my call that
Speaker 7: not only should surgeon doctor Pittilby suspended administrators, mister Peter
Speaker 7: and doctor Darren Keating should also be suspended. They have
Speaker 7: lost the confidence of the staff and the patients of
Speaker 7: the Bunderberg Hospital. The Minister can trust me not to
Speaker 7: hide the reality of what is happening in our wards
Speaker 7: and operating theaters.
Speaker 1: In an angri aside not recorded by the reporters of
Speaker 1: Parliament's Proceedings, Gordon Nuttle shouted at Messenger across the chamber.
Speaker 4: I hope you're satisfied that he's resigned. You are responsible
Speaker 4: for the lack of a surgeon in Bunderberg. Over the
Speaker 4: easter break.
Speaker 1: Peter Leck dashed off an email to Steve Bucklin to
Speaker 1: update him on Patel's latest demands. He had changed his
Speaker 1: mind about quitting and was weighing a new offer of
Speaker 1: a four month contract from one April two thousand and five.
Speaker 1: His current contract would finish in six days on thirty
Speaker 1: one March. In his email, Lex said.
Speaker 9: I offered support by suggesting he'd take a few days
Speaker 9: leave to consider his position and the future. Doctor Pateel
Speaker 9: indicated that he'd been doing that and was prepared to
Speaker 9: return to work tomorrow if he was offered a contract
Speaker 9: of fifteen hundred to two thousand dollars a day. He
Speaker 9: wants something close to two thousand dollars from one April
Speaker 9: three to July. He also wants the organization to fully
Speaker 9: support him, but was no longer explicit in his demand
Speaker 9: that we back him in relation to all the procedures
Speaker 9: he has undertaken in Bunderberg.
Speaker 1: Buckland's day was worsening. The story on a current affair
Speaker 1: had given the Patel fiasco a national profile. It suggested
Speaker 1: the surgeon was about to quit. Messenger's latest attack had
Speaker 1: made Nuttle even angrier, and the pr Flax were under pressure.
Speaker 1: The loss of a patient's life was of far less
Speaker 1: concern to the organization than damaging headlines. According to Queensland
Speaker 1: Health Little Known Risk Matrix a policy developed by a
Speaker 1: senior bureaucrat strictly for internal use. An adverse clinical incident
Speaker 1: is weighted as major if someone dies, but publicity that
Speaker 1: significantly damages the organization's reputation, however, has a heavier weighting
Speaker 1: of extreme. Apart from Bunderberg Hospital, Steve Buckland had another problem.
Speaker 1: It was my story that day in the Courier Mail
Speaker 1: disclosing how Queensland held staff at the John Tong Forensic
Speaker 1: Laboratories were being threatened with imprisonment over the leak about
Speaker 1: serious testing problems and maladministration. Nuttle went on Morning Radio
Speaker 1: to attempt damage control, and he expressed surprise at the
Speaker 1: suggestions that his organization, Queensland Health, was secretive, Although no
Speaker 1: patience details were disclosed. The DNA scientists had been worn
Speaker 1: by senior staff that an internal investigation would be followed
Speaker 1: by a police robe which could lead to criminal charges.
Speaker 1: They were told to get independent legal advice and prepare
Speaker 1: for questioning. The crackdown terrified. Tony Hoffman. Queensland Health issued
Speaker 1: a bland statement saying it was usual practice to investigate
Speaker 1: any unauthorized release of confidential documents, as such actions are
Speaker 1: breaches of the Code of conduct. Meanwhile, Buckland told Leck
Speaker 1: that the surgical service had to be supported over the
Speaker 1: yeas to break they needed to keep Patel operating.
Speaker 12: Buckland said, I think he should work over Eester and
Speaker 12: we would look at his contract from April first during
Speaker 12: next week. The offer of two thousand dollars per day
Speaker 12: is unacceptable. That would never be supported.
Speaker 1: Patel, Larger than Life, was out for dinner at a
Speaker 1: popular restaurant overlooking the ocean at Bagara, with its stylish
Speaker 1: timber fittings and furniture and a vast menu cases was
Speaker 1: a local favorite. Patel loudly talked up his surgical skills
Speaker 1: his dinner companion, Doctor Asher Curtis, a bright young intern
Speaker 1: on secondment from the Martyr Hospital in Brisbane, wanted the
Speaker 1: ground to swallow her up. Two months earlier, Pettel's sexual
Speaker 1: advances almost caused her to quit her stint in Bunderberg.
Speaker 1: Curtis was sure she had not misinterpreted Patel's crude repertoire.
Speaker 1: The man had said he wanted to marry her and
Speaker 1: start a new life. Before the tolling of any wedding bells.
Speaker 1: He promised to write glowing reports about her surgical performance,
Speaker 1: but there was a catch. He wanted sexual favors in
Speaker 1: the meantime. When he had come on strongly in January,
Speaker 1: Curtis was worried about how to reject Patel without offending
Speaker 1: him and jeopardizing her career. She quietly sought advice and
Speaker 1: support from Judy O'Connor, the Medical Education Officer, and doctor
Speaker 1: keyes Nidam. Curtis decided that she would politely decline Patel's suggestions,
Speaker 1: and she toughed it out. After Rob Messenger had slammed
Speaker 1: Patel in Parliament, Curtis heard rumors that he was going
Speaker 1: to quit and return to the United States. She felt
Speaker 1: sorry for him and accepted his offer of dinner, but
Speaker 1: she soon regretted it. Patel was coming on stronger than ever.
Speaker 1: Over a couple of glasses of wine, he was offering
Speaker 1: further inducements. The next morning, Doctor Aisha Curtis decided to
Speaker 1: terminate her contract early. She did not want to wait
Speaker 1: to find out if Patel was staying or leaving. Sick
Speaker 1: to Death is written and presented by me Headley Thomas,
Speaker 1: the Australian's national Chief correspondent. Claire Harvey is the Australian's
Speaker 1: editorial director, Audio editing, production and music have been done
Speaker 1: by Jasper Leik, with assistance from Leah Sammaglu and Neil Sutherland.
Speaker 1: Our producer is Christen Amias. Production management by Stephanie Coombs.
Speaker 1: Artwork by Sean Callanan. Thanks to Ryan Osland, Matthew Condon,
Speaker 1: Karina Berger, Ellie Dudley, David Murray, Dominique McDermott, Zach Sculander
Speaker 1: and all our family, friends and colleagues who helped in
Speaker 1: this series and contributed voice acting and special thanks to
Speaker 1: Tony Hoffman and Rob Messinger. Subscribers to The Australian here
Speaker 1: new episodes of Sick to Death first at Sick to
Speaker 1: Death podcast dot com and on Apple Podcasts. You can
Speaker 1: get exclusive access to photographs, videos, timelines and more at
Speaker 1: the website