The closure of the Brucker Surgery creates intolerable conditions in the Upper Styria region. The Red Cross is on the verge of collapse – and sometimes spends half a day transporting patients from hospital to hospital. A 100-year-old patient was turned away from three emergency rooms!
These are circumstances that one would rather situate in a developing country – and not in Austria. The closure of the surgical department at LKH Bruck has plunged the Upper Styria region into a real supply crisis!
Pensioner had an open fracture
If the Red Cross, which is generally not prone to alarmism, rushes to the press conference, there must be a fire on the roof. And in fact, Siegfried Stepwieser, former SPÖ regional councilor and district manager of the Red Cross in Bruck, as well as local branch manager Helmut Maier, describe hair-raising things: a 70-year-old pensioner who had suffered an open fracture (!) while working on wood had to be halfway continue after receiving initial care. He had to be taken out of the country before finally being admitted to a hospital.
Initially, the nearest LKH Bruck sent him away due to a lack of capacity. Then the LKH Leoben claimed that they did not have enough doctors. “Unfortunately not,” they finally said in Kalwang – and sent the seriously injured man on his way. The painful odyssey only ended for the Styrians in UKH Graz.
100-year-old turned away from three emergency rooms
For a 100-year-old patient who was also sent away from three emergency rooms, the situation was not much different: “We were with her for three hours,” Stepwieser reports to the “Krone”. The political veteran is annoyed that in forty years as a volunteer Red Cross member he has never experienced a situation like the one that exists now – after a true exodus of doctors from hospitals in the region. And he does not shy away from criticism of hospital company Kages: ‘The board must investigate who is responsible for this misery.’
The former deputy governor also reports on the tirades of abuse that paramedics have to endure due to long journeys and waiting times, and the increasing frustration that is driving many volunteers away: “Styria has always been a safe country – but within a few months you the healthcare system has hit the wall!”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
