Patients at the Launceston General Hospital are fed up with the heat in the stroke and medical wards, where temperatures reportedly hit 29 degrees on Monday.
Many took to social media to vent their frustration, with one person calling the conditions “stifling” and another saying they were “dripping with sweat” during their recent stay.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said Tasmania’s hospitals “should” have working air conditioning. “That is very clear,” he said.
“That’s why we are investing, as I understand it, some $4 million into upgrading the air conditioning system at the Launceston General Hospital.”
“It’s a hospital with ageing infrastructure, which is why we have a 10-year master plan of some almost $600 million, including a $120 million new heart centre.”
Emily Shepherd from the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) told Local Radio the problem is mostly in the D Block area.
“Our understanding is that there is a central air conditioning or air chilling unit that only chills certain parts of the hospital,” she said.
“This was the original air chilling unit that was installed when the hospital was built.”
“I believe the understanding at the time was that by chilling the corridors, that it would push the cool air out into the individual four bed rooms and single rooms. But certainly that hasn’t transpired.”
