Inquiry hears former manager falsified patient records

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A nurse at Tasmania’s second biggest hospital has made explosive claims before a parliamentary inquiry including accusing a former head of medical services of falsifying patient records to avoid coronial inquests. The state's health department says its aware of the allegations and will investigate.

Transcript

00:00 Registered nurse and midwife Amanda Duncan today gave evidence before a parliamentary inquiry into ambulance ramping.

00:09 She made a series of claims about former Launceston General Hospital Medical Services boss Peter Renshaw,

00:15 including allegations that he falsified medical certificates of death to avoid coronial investigations.

00:21 Ms Duncan said she received staff reports of 11 cases where the cause of death was allegedly falsified.

00:29 I hope my evidence may bring validation for families who have suspected something amiss with their loved one's death

00:37 and/or the legal documentation they received from the LGH.

00:42 I also hope that truth and justice may follow.

00:46 She detailed one death in the emergency department where staff felt it could have been avoided if the patient was reviewed quicker

00:52 and been resuscitated in a hospital bed,

00:55 and said the decision not to refer it to the coroner defied basic common sense.

01:00 She also told the committee of another death where a patient could not be resuscitated following a cardiac arrest,

01:07 and how despite nursing staff feeling the death was preventable, no coronial inquest was held.

01:13 Dr Renshaw resigned in 2022, a year before the Commission of Inquiry found he engaged in misconduct by misleading it.

01:21 The ABC tried to contact him.

01:23 The health department has not responded to Ms Duncan's claims, but has previously promised to investigate all staff concerns.

01:30 That's nuts.

01:30 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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