Amaranayake underwent a three-hour operation which began at 7.30pm – three hours after he was taken to Middlemore Hospital in Auckland.
Photo: Delivered

• An Auckland man says he had to wait for hours at Middlemore Hospital holding his bleeding fingers after a workplace incident.
• Hamangoda Gedara Gayan Madusanka Amaranayake, 34, was rushed to Middlemore Hospital on September 9 after the fingers of his right hand were “crushed” in the incident.
• Amaranayake said hospital staff made him wait in line without first aid for an hour.

An Auckland man says he had to wait an hour and a half in a hospital emergency room while blood poured from his mutilated fingers.

However, Health New Zealand says it is confident in the care he received based on a review of the case by clinicians.

Hamangoda Gedara Gayan Madusanka Amaranayake, 34, was taken to Middlemore Hospital after having the fingers of his right hand “crushed” in a workplace accident.

The incident occurred on September 9 at 4:20 p.m. The man was taken to hospital.

Amaranayake had to queue for first aid an hour after arriving at the hospital.

“One of my fingers was hanging off. “All I saw was blood and flesh on my hand and a long line of people in front of me,” he said.

“I tried hard to hold my broken fingers with a piece of cloth in my left hand. I couldn’t stand the pain. I felt thirsty. Everything around me became blurry. I thought this was the end of my life.

“I was only thinking about my children. I thought what would happen to them if I lost my life.”

He said a woman waiting in line told him to raise his hand to stop the bleeding.

“I saw my fingers turn black before (hospital staff) called me into (the room) to administer the first injection of painkiller.”

Amaranayake’s wife, Dushani De Silva, said she was “shocked” and “horrified” to see her husband waiting in line when she arrived at the hospital.

“I arrived at the hospital at 5:10 p.m. I was shocked to see him waiting in pain. He tried to hide his injured fingers from me because he didn’t want me to panic, but I knew he was in a lot of pain.”

Silva said her husband underwent a three-hour surgery that began at 7:30 p.m.

“The doctors cut off his index finger during the first surgery and said they were trying to repair his ring and middle fingers.

“Two days later they (doctors) said there was no point in keeping my ring finger.”

He underwent another surgery on his ring finger.

“He can’t do anything on his own. He can’t even eat normally. I have to feed him, brush his teeth, wash him and so on.”

The couple sold their property in Sri Lanka to come to New Zealand and, after two years in the country, were waiting to apply for permanent residence.

“We came to New Zealand with many dreams,” said his wife.

“My husband has over 10 years of experience as a mechanic. He is very talented. He obtained his NZQA qualifications to come here. He wanted to become a qualified WOF inspector and then set up his own workshop.

“But this injury left him disabled.

“We can’t come back because we sold our house and I don’t know if we can still get a PR because he’s injured now. I don’t know what to do.

“I just look at today. “I’m not looking at tomorrow.”

Amaranayake, a trained mechanic from Sri Lanka, arrived in New Zealand in April 2023.

The couple have a seven-year-old daughter and a five-year-old son.

Krishan Gallage, founder of the SLNZ helpline, said he was shocked when he heard about the incident.

“Hospitals should only obtain basic information when possible, but should not prioritize lengthy documents that can take a significant amount of time, especially in emergency situations.

“I ask health authorities to take into account the challenges new migrants face, such as language barriers and unfamiliarity with the system and processes.”

Gallage said migrants generally had strong faith in New Zealand’s healthcare system.

“There is always room for improvement, especially when it comes to meeting the needs of people who may not be fully aware of how the system works. I appreciate the hard work of healthcare staff, but I believe steps can be taken to better support new migrants in navigating the healthcare processes.”

A Health New Zealand spokesman said doctors had reviewed the case and were confident in the care provided.

“The amount of time a person waits in the ED – both before and after a doctor visit – is complex.

“People presenting to the emergency department are assessed upon arrival and prioritized based on their clinical need and severity, not the order in which they present.

“All decisions regarding patient care are made on a case-by-case basis by experienced clinical staff, and the most important element of all decisions is patient safety.

“We know it can be frustrating for people waiting in the Emergency Department, which is why our staff work extremely hard to assess, treat, discharge or admit patients in a reasonable time frame.

“Typically, with finger/hand injuries, the time to pain relief may vary due to the need to evaluate sensation and movement.”

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