There was an attack on the P.A. hospital in Brisbane last week----two nurses and a doctor were held hostage by a non-indigenous man with three knives. In sharp contrast to the action taken by health authorities at Doomadgee, where an attack was allegedly made by an indigenous man ,there has been no evacuation of staff from the P.A. hospital pending a guarantee by Brisbane community leaders that it is safe for staff to continue working at the P.A. and other Brisbane hospitals. Ah, yes, racism is alive and well in Australia. Laurie. Laurie and Desley Forde [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------------------------ Trudy Bray wrote......... -----Original Message----- From: Trudy Bray <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: news-clip <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Monday, November 22, 1999 9:19 AM Subject: The Courier-Mail: Remote hospital staff flee for their lives after violence Remote hospital staff flee for their lives after violence By BEN DORRIES and SEAN PARNELL 22nov99 TWELVE hospital staff have been evacuated from a remote Aboriginal outpost after a series of violent incidents left them fearing for their lives. The staff will meet Queensland Health authorities today to decide whether they return to Doomadgee Hospital, but community leaders have warned they may not be welcomed back. Central West District Health Service manager Graeme Jackson said yesterday the staff were airlifted to Mt Isa on Saturday night after one staff member was assaulted and others threatened with violence. Mr Jackson said an alcohol- fuelled disturbance on Friday escalated throughout the night, with stabbings and reports of a man running rampant with a gun. Mr Jackson said police advised staff to close the hospital doors, but another man smashed his way into the hospital with a hammer and threatened them with two knives. "We spoke with the staff on Saturday afternoon and they asked to be taken out of Doomadgee," he said. "We want to work with the community to re-establish the service, but we need an assurance our people will be safe." But community leaders in Doomadgee said yesterday the hospital staff left as a payback after they were accused of unprofessional conduct. At a meeting of health officials and 40 community leaders last week, Aboriginal activist Murrandoo Yanner claimed nurses at the hospital had:< Been seen running "half- naked" through the hospital with police.< Left dozens of opened and unopened condoms in their quarters.< Treated serious conditions such as brain tumours with Panadol.< Laughed as they tied semi- conscious patients up like mummies< Divulged confidential information on patients. Mr Yanner described the weekend incidents as relatively minor and said the staff had "walked away from 1600 innocent people". He said if police had responded promptly to the incidents the violence would not have escalated. "The hospital is paying back the community for speaking out," he said. "Even if they decide they want to come back they may not be welcomed back." Mr Jackson rejected the claims of misconduct, saying there was no evidence to support Mr Yanner's claims. "The staff left because they no longer felt safe, not because of anything Mr Yanner raised during the week," Mr Jackson said. "I had young nurses saying they had never felt more terrified in their lives." Mr Yanner said the situation was reminiscent of Palm Island in the 1950s and 60s when services were withdrawn after minor misdemeanors. "Most of us don't want to go to that hospital anyway unless we are going to die," Mr Yanner said. The hospital was being staffed yesterday by an Aboriginal health team, with the Royal Flying Doctor Service on standby. ************************************************************************* This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." ------------------------------------------------------- RecOzNet2 has a page @ http://www.green.net.au/recoznet2 and is archived at http://www.mail-archive.com/ To unsubscribe from this list, mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], and in the body of the message, include the words: unsubscribe announce or click here mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20announce This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." RecOzNet2 is archived for members @ http://www.mail-archive.com/recoznet2%40paradigm4.com.au/
