South Australia's Health Minister will discuss ways to improve the state's hospital system with a mother who says her daughter "should never have been discharged" after falling from her wheelchair.
Leanne, who did not want her surname to be published, said her daughter Amy — who has "a range of disabilities including quadriplegia" — was taken to Flinders Medical Centre last Thursday after slipping from her wheelchair and breaking her femur.
"She went to hospital Thursday morning, and had two days and one night in emergency because there were no beds, was what I was told," Leanne told the ABC earlier this week.
"When we arrived at hospital, [we] discovered that she had broken her leg, had a broken femur."
Leanne said Amy, who is aged in her 30s, could not have surgery because anaesthetic was too risky, and so she had a cast put on her leg and "was sent home" on Friday, but her condition then "deteriorated".
"She was really struggling to manage her airway and we were just at a loss at what to do," Leanne said.
In a post on Facebook on Saturday night, Leanne said that "Amy should never have been discharged".
"She requires a hospital bed and adequate treatment now," she wrote.
"It is an indictment on our medical system when a mother has to beg for help on Facebook."
Leanne said she was reluctant to take her daughter back to Flinders on New Year's Eve because of the high level of demand on the system, and the risk of COVID.
But she said she had no other option, and an ambulance transported Amy to the hospital on Saturday night after her condition worsened.
"I wanted to bypass emergency because she'd already had two days and one night there, but that wasn't an option and they said you just have to come in," she said.
"It's terrible when going to an emergency department could be life-threatening.
"We were told there's people with COVID in emergency in the hospital who are unwell seeking help, and of course they need help but if my daughter gets a cold, that becomes really serious."
SA Health rejected any suggestion Amy had initially been turned away, and said she was "treated quickly in the emergency department, admitted to a ward and was being treated according to her medical needs".
"FMC clinicians will continue to discuss the ongoing care with the patient and family," SA Health said.
SA Health Minister Chris Picton was among those to respond to Leanne on social media, offering to "keep in contact this week if there are further ongoing concerns about your daughter's care".
After Leanne requested an opportunity to talk further, Mr Picton on Wednesday said he looked forward to doing so.
"Separately [Leanne] would like to discuss with me some of the barriers that disabled people face in the acute hospital system and I am very happy to do that," he said on Wednesday.
"This is a topic that is also being considered nationally as part of the Disability Royal Commission and being considered by all state health systems."
Leanne said Amy, who currently remains in hospital, needs to keep her leg in the cast for six weeks.
