Misconduct allegations emerge at major regional hospital

Whistleblowers have come forward with a litany of complaints about financial and staffing decisions at Australia’s largest cross-border health service, arguing it is a hotbed of stress leave, subpar escalation policies and quiet exit payments.

A state integrity watchdog is now assessing serious allegations levelled at a small group of senior staff members at Albury Wodonga Health.

Two hospital sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, alleged to this masthead that at least one senior staff member had been hired without an open recruitment process – a potential breach of public sector rules.

“No job opening, no position description, but in a role with the highest salary compared to [their] peers,” one source said.

While Victorian public hospitals may make direct appointments in specific circumstances, such as emergencies or internal transfers, a third source who no longer works for the health service argued that this was not one of those instances. The source said there were also questions about whether this person had been brought on board because they had previous professional connections to an existing staff member.

“We used to always say, what do [they] do?”

A fourth hospital source said the appointment was above board, but did not deny that the position hadn’t been advertised.

At least two individuals have lodged wide-ranging complaints with Victoria’s corruption watchdog, the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission.

One of those complaints, seen by this masthead, alleges serious misconduct regarding the hospital’s finances, staffing and complaint-handling processes.

The alleged behaviour has not only affected employees, but has had flow-on effects for patient care, according to the whistleblower’s complaint.

An Albury Wodonga Health spokesperson said the health service is committed to maintaining a safe and respectful workplace and meeting the growing needs of its community.

Three sources with links to Albury Wodonga Health — all speaking on the condition of anonymity — said they were aware that the Ombudsman was assessing whistleblower allegations.

IBAC’s role is to investigate allegations of corruption in Victoria’s public sector. The commission may handball complaints to the Ombudsman, particularly if the claims relate to the lower threshold of public sector maladministration.

The Ombudsman is compelled to investigate a complaint referred to it by IBAC if it is reasonably satisfied that improper conduct has occurred.

The allegations mostly relate to the actions of two senior Albury Wodonga Health employees. This masthead has chosen not to name these individuals and does not suggest the allegations are true, only that they have been made to integrity agencies.

Albury Wodonga Health, which is jointly funded by the Victorian and NSW governments but reports to the Victorian Health Department, last year recorded abudget blowout.

It recorded a $36.3 million operating deficit in its most recent publicly available annual report. That deficit – for the financial year ending June 30, 2024 – was significantly higher than the $206,000 deficit the year prior.

In 2022, the health service recorded a $414,000 surplus.

The whistleblower claims relate to conduct alleged to have occurred between 2023 and this year.

Last year’s annual report blamed the health service’s multimillion-dollar deficit on “ever-increasing community demand” and “agency labour with its associated costs”.

Two hospital sources not authorised to speak publicly said that while there was a huge demand on the health service, and that agency workers were relied on to plug labour shortages, staff turnover had been high. Ex gratia payments would not have helped the hospital’s bottom line in light of this strain, according to the sources.

“They’re spending money to settle things out of court that, at the end of the day, could be going to help the patients,” one of the sources said.

Both sources said they had witnessed what they regarded as retaliatory behaviour when decisions were questioned, as well as conflicts of interest in internal processes and reviews. They claimed there was a culture in which escalating concerns beyond management was discouraged.

A third employee said many at the health service were angry and had felt “intimidated and harassed” at work.

A fourth source at the hospital, speaking in defence of senior staff, did not dispute that some staff members had been investigated for bullying in the last two years. But this source insisted ex gratia payments did not have a significant impact on the health service’s bottom line.

A fifth source said while they could not speak for every single staff member, many improvements had been made to the hospital’s governance in recent years.

The health service’s forthcoming annual report is expected to show an improvement in financial operations for the 2024-25 financial year.

A Victorian Ombudsman spokesperson declined to confirm or deny that the agency was assessing whistleblower complaints or conducting an investigation.

“IBAC can refer allegations of improper conduct (whistleblower complaints) to the Ombudsman to be dealt with under the Ombudsman Act,” the spokesperson said.

“This can include an assessment of whether the allegations meet the Ombudsman’s threshold for investigation. Investigations must be conducted in private, and the Ombudsman is not able to comment on individual cases.”

This masthead sent Albury Wodonga Health a detailed list of questions on Friday morning – including asking how many staff had been appointed without an open recruitment process in the last two years, how many employees had taken stress leave during that time, how many ex gratia payments had been made and what the procedure was for staff wishing to make a whistleblower complaint.

In response, a spokesperson said the health service was committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, accountability and workplace safety.

“We have clear policies and processes in place for recruitment, workplace behaviour, financial management, and staff wellbeing,” the spokesperson said.

“Allegations or concerns raised by staff are taken seriously and addressed in line with our obligations under Victorian public sector legislation and policy frameworks.

“AWH fully co-operates with a range of regulatory bodies across Victoria and NSW and does not comment on any matters that may be subject to external or internal investigation.”

The health service was set up in 2009 via the merger of Albury Base Hospital and Wodonga Regional Health Service. It serves about 300,000 people in southern NSW and northeastern Victoria.

It is not the first time this year that public sector whistleblowers have come forward with staffing complaints. In June, this masthead revealed that Museums Victoria had revised its hiring policies after an investigation by integrity agencies.

The Albury Wodonga Health complaints come amid a heated debate about the redevelopment of Albury Hospital and whether authorities should have opted for a new, greenfield site on the Victorian side of the border.

An IBAC spokesperson said: “As a matter of practice, IBAC does not comment on whether it has a complaint or investigation before it.”

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