So, you've built the Taj Mahal...

11 APR 2024.

So, you've built the Taj Mahal...

This is what modern healthcare has become: ‘important’ figures making crucial decisions in suits and ties, accompanied by a posse of even more important advisors.

During my last attendance at a health forum, I sat down amidst the hustle and bustle and was approached by a courteous man in a suit and tie. He engaged me in the usual polite small talk — asking about my origins, my interests for the day, and the like. Eventually, he remarked, as the room began to fill, "It should be a productive day today, with so many important people in attendance." What struck me was that most of these decision-makers hadn't utilised the public health system they oversee for years, if at all, or didn't even reside in the region. I found these comments astounding because the true importance in healthcare lies with... Can you guess it? The individuals seeking that healthcare — the consumers.

Yet, we've been overlooked for far too long, especially in rural areas. Politicians and their entourages swoop in (quite literally), cut ribbons, take guided tours led by the hospital chairman and their associates, and proceed to exchange pleasantries and commendations, patting each other on the back for a job well done.

This scenario is all too common in healthcare: soundbite healthcare, where people construct a building and believe the problem is solved. I witness this at both the major project and local levels — consumers are marginalised, while it's the time for executives and politicians to bask in the spotlight.

Locally, the term 'community' (which really means the select few individuals showcased in the photos) constructed a respite centre that no one in the actual disability lived experience community required or desired. Yet, the community eagerly contributed, buying bricks or toasters for the facility, all in the name of assisting the less fortunate disabled individuals in our community, whom they believed needed to be segregated in a special facility adjacent to the hospital.

You know, because nothing says respite quite like being placed in a facility adjacent to a hospital, right? Once again, the able-bodied and minded clamoured to have their photos taken to showcase their support for the disabled and less fortunate, as not supporting such a project would be akin to social suicide.

Enter the major hospital projects, with governments and executives vying to outdo each other with promises and exaggerations of the infrastructure they're building and developing for the community they are ‘so passionate’ about. Locally, a new Emergency Department was constructed, hailed as a $36 million investment by the leaders — unprecedented, they claim. The definition of unprecedented seems to change rather often

Yet, not a single doctor, consumer, or ED nurse was featured in the photo shoot during the opening ceremony. Instead, there were plenty of suits and ties, and wide smiles, with exclamations of "You da man!" and "No, you da man!" It's nauseating to witness. For a $36 million project where the majority of funds went into design, consultants, salaries, and the like, and didn't actually increase the hospital's capacity, it's disheartening. A shiny building that most of the individuals congratulating themselves will likely never step foot in.

What requires significant change in public health?

Healthcare must prioritise real consumer needs over budgetary constraints determined by unseen figures in the background—these very individuals to whom ministers and senior bureaucrats delegate responsibility, unseen sycophants ensconced in offices, drawing hefty salaries, and justifying their positions. I thought there was no money for healthcare? Big salaries exist though…

How much longer must we endure the invisible puppeteers dictating our healthcare system? When will politicians and senior executives exhibit an actual opinion and professional integrity, compelling them to take a stance? Presently, those in charge of our healthcare services are ineffectual sycophants, preoccupied with their stipends, careers, and future elections.

With love

Richard and Havic x