Bathurst maternity ward at 'crisis point'
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The Royal Australian College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says Bathurst Hospital's maternity ward is at a "crisis point".
One of the two specialist obstetricians, who perform emergency caesareans at the hospital, has gone on sick leave.
The Greater Western Area Health Service says locums are providing "adequate" cover and caesareans can still be performed.
It says locums have been appointed to cover the shift on Mondays and Tuesdays.
However, a spokesman for the college, Dr Pieter Mourik, says it is a disaster waiting to happen.
"What's happened at Bathurst is just the first of many small rural units that rely on one or two people to be on call 24-hours-a-day and, as what's happened in Bathurst, if one gets sick then the other has to be on-call 24-hours-a-day and it's unsustainable and unsafe," he said.
Dr Mourik says locums can be unreliable, which is not reassuring for women who are about to give birth.
"There are some very good locums who would come in and be absolutely capable of dealing with anything that happens," he said.
"However, sometimes locums aren't able to come.
"They may get sick themselves and then you've got one person in town who may not be able to be on call 24-hours-a-day. So that's the problem."
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