Health team help cyclone victims
Department of Health staff will continue to work closely with the Port Hedland community to assist the victims of Cyclone George.
Twenty-two people injured at a mining campsite have been treated at Port Hedland Regional Hospital. Fifteen of those were flown to Perth overnight.
State Health Coordinator Dr Andrew Robertson said eight patients had been admitted to Royal Perth Hospital (RPH), four to Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (SCGH) and three to Fremantle Hospital.
One patient at RPH and one at SCGH had since been discharged.
Three people had also been admitted to Port Hedland Regional Hospital where they were now in a stable condition.
The Department of Health sent an emergency medical team, including two emergency physicians, an anaesthetist, a trauma surgeon and eight specialist nurses, to Port Hedland yesterday to join the local medical response.
Dr Robertson said a team of six doctors and nurses from the team would stay in the region to be on-hand for Cyclone Jacob, expected to pass through the Pilbara late on Sunday.
“The rest of the medical team are expected to leave Port Hedland later today,” he said.
Dr Robertson said that many agencies had worked together in a coordinated emergency response and that the Department of Health would continue to provide whatever assistance it could.
“This is a traumatic time for the victims of Cyclone George and for the people of the Pilbara region,” he said.
“Our priority is to ensure that these communities continue have the access to the highest level of medical care and we are ready to help them deal with the cyclones’ aftermath.”
Dr Robertson praised the efforts of the staff at Port Hedland Regional Hospital for their tireless work throughout.
“This has been a tremendous team effort and I congratulate everyone who has been involved,” he said.
Media contact: (08) 9489 2888
Note to Editors:
Reporters should check with individual Perth hospitals for patient condition reports. Condition reports for patients at Port Hedland Regional Hospital are available by contacting the Department of Health Public Affairs number above.
