NEWS-HR

Anne Locco’s mother fractured her skull, broke her neck and sustained a huge cut to her head when she fell out of a lifting device at her aged care home as two carers tried to move her from her bed. Moira McCarthy died in palliative care 11 excruciating days later. “The poor old pet didn’t know what was going on,” Ms Locco says of her 85-year-old mother. “She hadn’t had anything to eat or drink because of the fractured neck, which meant she couldn’t swallow. She passed away on May 5 [2013].” Four years later, though, Ms Locco and the nursing home where her mother fell are still waiting for the Coroner to make a finding about how she died and who, if anyone, was to blame. Until that happens, nothing much else can move. Advertisement The home, the RSL’s Vasey home in East Brighton, will make no comment until the report is finalised. The Coroner’s spokeswoman could say nothing except she expected the case to be finalised “shortly”. Ms Locco said the Aged Care Complaints Commissioner was also waiting for the finding.

Global Care Incorporated has a s.365 – Application to deal with contraventions involving dismissal (consent arbitration) being determined by Deputy President Bull in his Perth chambers (Granitto).

An application for approval of the Lendlease Engineering Pty Ltd New South Wales Enterprise Agreement 2016 (s.185 – Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement) is with Fair Work Commissioner Roe in Court 9 – Level 5 in Melbourne for a decision at 2pm.

Benalla’s mayor believes the deaths of Isabel and Judy Stephens were “simply a tragic accident”, as autopsies are conducted to determine how the mother and daughter died. After a week-long search for Isabel, aged 89, and her daughter Judy, 53, their bodies were found on Saturday in bushland near Samaria, about 20 minutes’ drive from the Tatong pub where they shared one of their last meals. Police will not yet comment on how the pair died. Cooinda chief executive Margaret Aldous said “The Cooinda Community is deeply saddened by Isabel and Judy Stephen’s deaths. Our thoughts, love and support is with their family and friends at this incredible sad and difficult time.” Judy, who had an intellectual disability and was insulin dependent, lived with eight other residents at the church’s cottages.

The Health Services Union and Alfred Health are having a s.739 (Application to deal with a dispute) stoush.

A s.739 (Application to deal with a dispute) by Bradley Davidson against the Health Communication Network T/A Medical Director has been dismissed by Fair Work Deputy President Asbury.

A health professional has been suspended from practising for nine months, after his conviction for stealing a dangerous drug, known as “Jackson Juice” from Wairarapa Hospital. The Wairarapa practitioner, and a colleague, pleaded guilty in Masterton District Court in 2015 to a joint charge of stealing an anaesthetic named propofol​ – sometimes known as Jackson Juice because it was one of the drugs that killed pop star Michael Jackson in 2009. The man was also censured by the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal, ordered to attend an ethics course, and disclose his conviction and the tribunal decision to current and any future employers for three years. The pair, who cannot be named, both worked for the Wairarapa DHB at the time and were arrested after a police operation. Police went to an address in September 2015, and found the woman inside with a tube in her arm, through which she was receiving the anaesthetic. Upon her arrest she told police the man had inserted the tube so she could administer the drug herself, which she had been doing for about a month, after suffering a shoulder injury. She told police she was taking it for anxiety problems, and to help her sleep. Masterton police said when the pair were arrested that the drug could easily have killed her. The tribunal, whose decision was published on Monday, said propofol, a sedative and short-acting anaesthetic agent that results in a decreased level of consciousness and lack of memory, is potentially dangerous, particularly in unsupervised hands. The man also admitted using the drug himself on occasions, because of the stress he was under. The total value of the theft was $4669. The man and the woman were both convicted by the court, and ordered to come up again if called upon. The tribunal said the man had not been practising for more than 18 months, and was having difficulty finding general healthcare work, such as in retirement homes, because of his convictions. He was working casually in a bread factory.

Thompson Healthcare Pty Ltd is set to defend a s.394 (Application for unfair dismissal remedy) before Deputy President Sams in the Fair Work Commission Terrace Tower 80 William Street East Sydney (Adamopoulos).