The standard of care at one of the largest hospitals in regional Western Australia is being formally assessed for the first time since the pandemic, and nearly a year overdue because of COVID-19.
Assessors from the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards have spent this week conducting a widespread audit of Kalgoorlie Health Campus, which, like all public and private hospitals, must be accredited under what is known as National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.
The NSQHS Standards are a quality-assurance mechanism designed to protect the public from harm.
A total of 148 actions across eight standards are assessed, including the hospital's clinical governance, how it prevents and controls infections, medication safety, its delivery of comprehensive care and blood management.
Audits are conducted over a period of one to four months and include an initial assessment and, if actions are not met, a final assessment.
The last audit of Kalgoorlie Health Campus was carried out in September 2018 and the hospital's accreditation expired in January this year.
It was given a 12-month extension after the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare suspended accreditation assessments in 2020 due to the risk of COVID transmission.
Coroner critical of mental health unit
This week's audit is the first assessment since a new $6.2-million MRI machine was installed and became operational at the hospital last year.
It also follows heavy criticism of the hospital's mental health unit earlier this year by a WA Coroner after an inquest into the 2018 death of 20-year-old Jordan James Williams.
Coroner Michael Jenkin recommended plans for a new purpose-built facility be fast-tracked after finding a lack of staff, beds, facilities and secure infrastructure at the existing unit.
It is the second case in recent years where serious lapses in the care of a psychiatric patient were questioned during a coronial inquest.
Karen Luxford, the chief executive of the Sydney-based Australian Council on Healthcare Standards, told the ABC the outcome of the Kalgoorlie hospital assessment was not likely to be finalised until late January.
Hospital facelift finished in 2015
Since 2019, just four hospitals and day-procedure services have failed to receive accreditation out of nearly 1,300 assessments completed Australia-wide.
There were 29 cases that required mandatory reassessment and significant risks were identified on 23 occasions, according to data from the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare.
A total of 72 per cent of Australian hospitals and day-procedure services met the requirements after an initial assessment.
According to the WA Country Health Service (WACHS), the 106-bed inpatient facility at Kalgoorlie ranks as one of the largest public hospitals in regional WA.
It has about 27,000 presentations a year to its emergency department.
WACHS Goldfields regional director Peter Tredinnick said in a statement that the service was fully accredited.
"Like health services right around the country, WACHS regularly participates in the accreditation process," he said.
A five-year, $59.6-million redevelopment of Kalgoorlie Health Campus, which included upgrades to its emergency department, high-dependency unit and medical imaging department, was completed in 2015.
The project included the opening of a $3.8-million cancer centre with four chemotherapy chairs, as well as upgrades for allied health services such as physiotherapy, occupational therapy, audiology, dietetics, podiatry and social work.
