Dr. John Wakefield, Executive Director of the Queensland Health Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Service visited Wanganui Hospital last week.

He stated that he was quite happy to know that the hospital authority has decided to connect with the families of those who lost lives at an event at the hospital.

While speaking to the clinicians and staff of the hospital, he stressed over the move to improve patient safety in his home state.

Dr. Wakefield added that because of the complex healthcare processes involving strong medicines and complex surgeries, the risk factor is always present.

According to him, the risk in health care has increased in the last 10 years.

He said, “We've created an environment that's very effective and we're living longer than ever, but at the same time the risks have crept up on us without us realising it”.

He also mentioned that providing training to medical staff is not enough to attain the best results, instead team work and communication are two key steps to ensure safety of the patients.

He stated that these days doctors and other health care staff are more inclined to encourage people to have improved health, but they should understand that patients expect care from them.