For nearly 9 months the Visiting Medical Officers (VMOs) and the Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) have been in discussion in relation to staffing issues at the Bellinger River District Hospital.
We first flagged this issue in September 2020 in a previous post and media release …
Threat to Emergency Department hours ?
Several weeks ago Dr Andrew Heslop released details of the VMO issue to the public and the media via Facebook and various other media platforms. A copy of his statement is attached below in case you missed it. The resulting social media storm has had the desired effect and appears to have pressured the MNCLHD into engaging more co-operatively with the VMOs.
The MNCLHD has now agreed to flexible contracts, is meeting with local doctors who have expressed interest in working at the hospital, and is in discussion with the Agency for Clinical Innovation. There is another VMO meeting scheduled for this Wednesday morning, and a get together with prospective VMOs on Wednesday evening, and this is all progress in the right direction. However, this does not mean that the proposal to close the ED after hours has been withdrawn.
We encourage you to attend the community update and discussion on Thursday 03 June at 6:00pm at St. Andrew’s Church Hall in Hyde Street, Bellingen. The hall is the building fronting Hyde Street, entrance will be via the side door.
Note: we will be operating a COVID-Safe environment and will ask you to either sign-in manually, or use the QR code provided . Seating will be 2 metres apart.
If you cannot attend the meeting, and would like to be kept updated, you can either subscribe to our website, or email us at bellohospitalrescue@gmail.com
View Dr. Andrew Heslop’s statement here
Bellingen Hospital Again under Threat
The community meeting at St. Andrew’s Hall on 03 June was a great success with around 40 people attending. 
