Gary Hardgrave spoke with Dr Chris Corney about the Rinehart Medical Foundation’s donation delivering new premium patient suites at Mater Private Hospital.
Host:
Pretty exciting news out of the great hospital asset we have here in Brisbane, the Mater Private Hospital. They’ve just unveiled a major refurbishment of its inpatient rooms. It’s been a generous donation from the Rinehart Medical Foundation. I saw Gina Rinehart over the weekend on a couple of occasions. One of Australia’s greatest, without doubt. I would give her a damehood. This lady fixes things, funds things. And yes, she is wealthy, but she puts the money back into the hands of everyday people, which is great.
Now, the upgrades done at the Mater — well, he’s a physician who looks after internal medicine and perioperative medicine at Mater. So it’s good we’ve got a doctor in the house. He’s here to discuss the clinical side of these new facilities. Good to see you, Doctor.
Dr Chris Corney:
Yeah, thank you for having me.
Host:
So this is a pretty amazing facility. Can you describe this? I mean, what is the importance of having these kind of premium suites? Is it an option that only wealthy people can afford or is it just going to make a difference generally for the hospital?
Dr Corney:
I think it’s going to make a difference for the hospital in general. I guess these suites were made possible, as you mentioned, by a very generous donation from a wonderful Australian of great vision and generosity, Mrs Gina Rinehart.
Host:
She doesn’t have to do these things, does she? Doesn’t need to, but she does this and so many other things that people would not know about.
Dr Corney:
No. But, you know, when she originally came to us with this vision, she wanted some best-in-class hospital suites for patients. She talked a lot about comfort and dignity for the patients and excellence, clinical excellence, and I think we’ve really been able to deliver that which she was looking for to the benefit of all of our patients. Not just for everyone, but there will certainly be people out there who are looking for an area that’s a little more tranquil or with a little more space to recuperate in. And I think we’ve delivered that.
Host:
I mean, I know of people right now who are in hospital for the next two and a half weeks because they had an emergency surgery on Friday. Okay. There’s somebody I know of. And so they’re in hospital for two and a half weeks. They’re not in your hospital, they’re in a different hospital. But I would imagine that if they were capable of having something that was a bit more home-like and a bit more, as you say, those sort of comforts, that would make that two and a half weeks seem a little more pleasant, wouldn’t it?
Dr Corney:
Definitely. I think you can’t overstate the importance of having a peaceful, comfortable environment to recuperate in. And that’s certainly the feedback that we’ve had from the patients. They look forward to that. And as you say, sometimes people are in hospital for a long period of time, certainly in Queensland, which is the most decentralised state in the nation. People are often travelling a long distance away from their family, from their friends and from their support network. And so to have a really, an environment that’s conducive to them healing well, it’s invaluable. No doubt about it.
Host:
So how many suites are there?
Dr Corney:
There’s seven.
Host:
Right.
Dr Corney:
Yeah.
Host:
Which is a lot really, isn’t it?
Dr Corney:
It is a lot.
Host:
At this level?
Dr Corney:
It’s a lot. And they’re incredibly well appointed, I have to tell you.
Host:
Well, tell us what are the appointments. You’re the doctor. Tell us how. You can now be a real estate agent as well.
Dr Corney:
I’ll be the hotelier for a second.
Host:
Well, there you go. Yeah, tell us about it.
Dr Corney:
Look, the finishes are second to none. I would say that these are the finest hotel-style hospital accommodations in the nation. It’s more akin to being in a wonderful hotel: soft furnishings, beautiful art, comfortable couches and beds, wonderful linens, even a special bar menu and a pillow menu. Everything’s been thought of.
Host:
Is that right? I mean, this is high-end stuff, but it takes pressure off the rest of the hospital, I’d reckon.
Dr Corney:
It sure does. That’s exactly right. And off the patients, you know. There’s also even a hair washing station in a couple of these suites. People are often upset that they can’t wash their hair. So we’re really delivering a unique experience to the patient.
Host:
Do you think this sort of changes some of the paradigms about hospital stays — that now that you’ve got this kind of high-end thing, maybe there might be a reflection down the line as to how we improve the experience for patients in other parts of the hospitals?
Dr Corney:
This is what I’ve actually spoken with the hospital leadership about. I think what Mrs Rinehart has done here has helped us push the envelope a little, and in so doing, I hope that we maybe have set a bit of a new blueprint or a benchmark for what we can actually deliver to the patients of Queensland.
Host:
Yeah. And your point you make about people who come from other places, and some of them may well come in an emergency circumstance. They’re flown in and they end up in hospital in Brisbane because the services are here, but they’re not in, say, a more remote place. Having that dignity, knowing that dignity is available, I think would be a big plus.
Dr Corney:
A very big plus. And it may well stop people from travelling, even sometimes internationally, to seek this type of care that they can now get in their own backyard. So this is definitely a first. The other thing I would say too is that there’s provision for some of the suites to actually be interconnected. So if you need to bring people with you, if you have support people, we can actually accommodate them to assist with your recovery.
Host:
Doesn’t that make a difference?
Dr Corney:
I think a huge difference.
Host:
So what does it do for the doctors and nurses, your colleagues, those people you work with, trying to make the difference for patients? Does that give you all a lift as well?
Dr Corney:
I think so. There’s a lot more smiles in the corridors in the last couple of weeks, definitely. So we’ve seen a boost in morale. But also, I mean, the old adage, you know, happy wife, happy life. When you’re a doctor, it’s happy patient, happy life, really. And so you see it on the faces of the patients — feeling relaxed and comfortable — and that helps you to do your job and deliver healthcare to them effectively.
Host:
Because I was actually in one of our state hospitals earlier today, visiting somebody, and I’ll give them a shout out: Logan Hospital. I was met by a terrific person at reception. There were smiles all around, staff were there, but they were under the pump. Everybody’s under the pump. And so let’s face it, the health system is on edge. It’s got a crisis. People who work in private as well work in public and vice versa. There’s a crossover in the medical field, I know that. So I guess taking that pressure off the patients is a really big thing, and really I think it helps professionally everybody.
Dr Corney:
Very much so. Definitely.
Host:
So do we now put ourselves well and truly on the map, that this is a place that the rest of the country’s got to look at and aspire to?
Dr Corney:
I would hope that we are setting the new benchmark, definitely, for domestically delivered healthcare. I think I should say, you know, I think the standard of healthcare at the Mater Hospital is always fantastic, but we can now deliver it in these well-appointed, very, very comfortable rooms. And the sky’s the limit.
Host:
Is there a little bit of competition between the hospitals? Because, you know, both of my children were born at the Mater, and I certainly give praise to Greenslopes as well. I mean, let’s just face it, we’ve got some great hospital facilities, and a little bit of gentle competition is good, isn’t it?
Dr Corney:
I haven’t any, but, you know, there are a lot of great private hospitals in Brisbane. I think we’re very lucky.
Host:
Yeah. So, all right. So even luckier again. So the donation from the Rinehart Medical Foundation is making a difference there.
Dr Corney:
It is making a definite difference to how we deliver care at the Mater.
Host:
All right. Well done. Good to see you and congratulations. Premium patient suites at the Mater Private Hospital. Thank you, Dr Gina Rinehart AO — no doubt making a big difference, as she always seems to do. Good to see you, Dr Chris Corney. He’s a doctor of internal medicine and perioperative medicine.
