Metro North Health

27 year-old Bryce would often spend his kidney clinic appointments in a waiting room with people three times his age, until recently, when we launched a new young adult kidney clinic for those with kidney failure and severe kidney disease.

The partnership between Metro North Health, Transplant Australia and Sony Foundation means patients like Bryce are getting youth-focussed care, surrounded by like-minded patients where they pass the time painting and sharing stories. 🎨 🩸

Bryce's kidney's were severely failing when he found out by chance from a routine blood test, requiring a transplant which he received from his Dad in 2020.

"I remember the first time I went to a kidney clinic, I think I was the only person there that was under 60 years old," Bryce said.

"It was a shock in that regard, thinking: Why is this happening to me? The youth clinic definitely breaks down that shock factor, that it can happen to anybody." ... See MoreSee Less

Metro North Health

There's a small but mighty team working hard behind the scenes to ensure the flow of patients in and out of RBWH as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Gareth is the director of patient flow services, who oversees the coordination of patient access and care delivery from point of entry right through to discharge, throughout the entire hospital.

The team work closely with a range of other teams who coordinate bed management, after hours management, clinical support team through the UPLATE service as well as central clinical equipment coordination.

"We work to improve flow of patients in and out of emergency so that there is a flow on effect for ambulance and offload calls in the community," Gareth said.

"The end goal is to provide and coordinate better care for our patients in a timely manner, — it's not just based on efficiency."

If you are an agile dynamic leader looking to improve care for our patients, who also has a brain for logistics, then apply for the assistant nursing and midwifery director for patient flow & clinical effectiveness today: bit.ly/3zf6pyp
#WorkforusWednesday ... See MoreSee Less

Metro North Health

Queensland has seen a recent spike in the number of overseas travellers returning with cases of malaria and dengue fever, both transmitted by certain species of mosquitoes.

But Metro North Public Health Unit entomologist Jon tells us that it’s very likely all the cases were contracted abroad, and our risk is relatively low for local transmission even for people who live in dengue-susceptible areas of Central and North Queensland.

“The cases we are seeing are people who have arrived here sick, and the question is whether local mosquitoes can spread it, but that is extremely rare with malaria and still uncommon with dengue,” he said.

“We’re seeing this increase due to a return in overseas travel post-COVID, but these numbers are similar to what we saw before the pandemic.

“It’s important to try not to get bitten by mosquitos overseas to avoid getting sick, so taking all the precautions you can with repellent and clothing are key!” 🦟 ... See MoreSee Less

Metro North Health

My wife and I had just bought a caravan and planned to travel around Australia, but that is all on hold now. We still might be able to do some local trips. We always loved travelling. I have had to accept that this is my life now. I feel sorry for the younger people who are in here. It has opened my eyes to the work that goes on, I had never been to a hospital in my life and now I practically live here.

#MondayMantra 💭 Terry 71 years-old, RBWH patient on dialysis ... See MoreSee Less

Metro North Health

RBWH clinical nurse consultant Angela has been going purple for epilepsy today, raising awareness for all her patients and the 28,000 Queenslanders who live with active epilepsy. 💜

“Seventy per cent of epilepsy patients live relatively normal lives, but it’s the thirty per cent that don’t due to drug resistant epilepsy that we need to assist,” she said.

“They might have seizures once a month to multiple times a day despite medication, and those seizures mean they can’t work or drive.

“It’s a debilitating disease so anything we can do to alleviate that and help our patients lead a happy life is what keeps us going.” ... See MoreSee Less