Ian: "What should we do? Alec: "Burn it down, from the inside" - Alec Doomadge, after death of his little sister Adele in Doomadgee hospital in Nth Qld 31 May 2020.
What is wrong with the Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Arth and her advisors? why didn’t she simply respond to the undeniable fact that young aboriginal women are dying in Doomadgee because of government neglect. Go there and tell the people: “This is never gonna happen again … and mean it … put the most competent doctor in charge and begin the process of wiping out rheumatic fever in the Gulf. Fix the plumbing, the housing, the hospital and its racist staff … bring 20th century medicine to the Gulf in the 21st century!
Adele Sandi presented at Doomadgee hospital in Far North Queensland with rheumatic fever. She was turned away by Queensland Health with Panadol. Rheumatic fever is an inflammatory disease that can develop when strep throat or scarlet fever isn’t properly treated. Last Saturday Adele Sandi died having never received adequate medical care.
Rheumatic fever can cause permanent damage to the heart, including damaged heart valves and heart failure. It is now rare in most developed countries where it was once common, but here in Queensland there is a rheumatic fever pandemic among the Aboriginal population because of overcrowding in houses. Prime Minister Scott Morrison wants to subsidise the building industry during Covid-19 but will not spend an extra penny on public housing, Morrison wants all the money to go to private enterprise.
Adele Sandi’s mother tried to get help from the local member, Robbie Katter. She asked the Royal Doctor Flying service to organise transport so that her daughter could get proper treatment from a cardiac specialist. To no avail. The director of nursing at the Doomadgee hospital turned her away.
On the 6th of June 2020 I interviewed Adele’s brother, Alec Doomadgee, at Black lives Matter rally outside Brisbane City Hall about what he had to say about institutional racism in Queensland Heath.
Paradigm Shift have contacted local member for Traeger, Robbie Katter, for his response to the allegations made by Alec Doomadgee about failure of duty of care by Queensland Health.
Ian Curr
The Paradigm Shift
4ZZZ fm 102.1 Fridays at noon
An investigation into the hidden killer in remote Australian communities.
ALEC DOOMADGEE, Chair, Waanyi Native Title Aboriginal Corporation: I’m tired of burying my people. It.. I can’t… I can’t keep burying young people.
LOUISE MILLIGAN: In Doomadgee, young people are dying from a disease that all but disappeared in the rest of Australia decades ago, without getting the healthcare they need.
PAT TURNER, National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation: If that was a white kid, in middle class Sydney, you know, there’d be an uproar, okay? But it’s not a white kid. You know? It’s an Aboriginal kid living in the bush. Does that child deserve any less, than a white kid living in middle class Sydney? See Heart Failure: An investigation into the hidden killer in remote Australian communities at https://www.abc.net.au/4corners/heart-failure:-an-investigation-into-the-hidden/13785690
https://www.facebook.com/PShiftonZed/posts/2920626551307536
To Robbie Katter
Qld State Member for Traeger
Dear Mr Katter,
I interviewed Alec Doomadgee at the Black Lives Matter Rally in Brisbane on 6 June 2020.
During the course of the interview Alec said that you were asked to provide transport and assistance for this sister Adele who was dying from Rheumatic Fever which he says is a ‘pandemic amongst aboriginal people‘ in your electorate. He says that the local GP and Director of Nursing at Doomadgee hospital sent Adele away with a Panadol. He says that the Royal Flying doctor service would not provide assistance in taking his sister to see a cardiac specialist.
What do you say to the allegation by Alec Doomadgee that you failed in your duty of care to a constituent in your electorate?
What will you do in the future to make sure this is not repeated?
I wish to interview you about this matter.
What is a convenient time and please provide a mob number where you can be reached?
Yours sincerely,
Ian Curr
Paradigm Shift
Radio 4ZZZ fm 102.1
Fridays at Noon
I spoke with the Member for Traeger, Robbie Katter, about the failure to provide Adele with proper care and he denied that he had knowledge of Adele’s condition until the Saturday afternoon when she was dying. He also said that there should be an inquiry and that, in his experience as a pilot who flies out of Mt Isa airport there would have been no shortage of planes to fly Adele from Doomadgee to Mt Isa for care. His full interview with me is at https://soundcloud.com/ian-curr/the-adele-effect-institutional-racism-in-qld-health
To: Mr Robert (Robbie) Katter Electorate
Traeger
Subject: ‘Deeds not Words’ – Member for Traeger
Hello Robbie,
This is a follow-up of the letter (9 June 2020) and subsequent interview (14 June 2020) I had with you on community radio 4ZZZ about the untimely death of Adele Sandi at Doomadgee.
Has an inquiry been made into Adele Sandi’s death? If not, why not?
Can you confirm what you said at interview that transport by air for Adele to Mt Isa Hospital from Doomadgee should not have been a problem?
Will you raise concerns in the parliament of the issue of a pandemic of both renal disease and rheumatic fever currently experienced by first nations people in your electorate of Traeger?
I have copied this email to Les Malezer who has been involved in these and similar matters for many years. I discussed them with Les briefly last week.
Yours sincerely,
Ian Curr
The Paradigm Shift
4ZZZ fm 102.1 Fridays at Noon
0407 687 016
Queensland Health is beyond repair. But in saying that Hospitals like Ipswich where it is running on Diesel generators, the staff are 5 star in their service and compassion.
It is a Department issue, and an issue of people walking over others at the top to climb the ladder based on how much they save the department in $$ because it is so poorly run. Those on the front line are being forced into situations by those above.
When I found out about the Health Payroll issue, I started to report this and no one listened at the time, then by chance I got Madonna King to look at it after calling talkback, and then it was exposed from there. I was with a company supplying software to QH at that time, and they were always asking the company to solve issues.. I have met some nurses and they had no money, so I loaned one some $ to get food, thats when it got serious..