“Engineers are continuing to work on the system to restore it to its highest performance.”
The hospital apologised for the air conditioning problem.Credit: Getty Images
One Alfred employee, who spoke to The Age on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said the building in question had long had issues with ambient heat, but it had been particularly bad over the past few days.
“The problem isn’t new. It’s ageing infrastructure,” the employee said.
“It’s a brick building. There’s no vegetation, so once the building heats up, it takes days to cool down. In past summers, we’ve had bone cement go off [in storage].”
The employee said operating theatres would have been prioritised for cooling.
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“If the humidity is too high [in theatre], we can’t maintain the sterility of instruments. That’s why they’d be sending cool air to the operating theatre,” they said “But I can understand the frustration of staff and patients sitting in waiting rooms. It’s bloody hot.”
A second Alfred employee, also speaking anonymously, said the theatres were decades old and “well due” for a rebuild.
One Labor source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said: “The Alfred is ageing and needs a rebuild.”
A government spokesperson said it had invested an extra $233 million into the hospital in the current budget for upgrades, including to the cooling and heating plant.
Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said The Alfred needed urgent infrastructure funding as a major tertiary hospital.
“This is what happens when the budget is stuffed. Essential equipment like air conditioning to support our health services doesn’t become a priority. Labor’s priorities are all wrong. Under Jacinta Allan, Labor’s focus is on the [Suburban Rail Loop] instead of maintaining vital health services like The Alfred.”
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