A critically ill 63-year-old man who spent two weeks at Traralgon Hospital, unable to get a bed in Melbourne, has been taken to The Alfred for life-saving surgery.

But only because his uncle came to Neil Mitchell.

The man has cancer but could not undergo treatment until he had surgery in Melbourne.

But he couldn’t get a bed.

“He lost between 15 and 16 kilos in two weeks,” his uncle, Brian, told Neil Mitchell.

“He is like a vegetable at the moment and we can’t get a bed.”

Neil Mitchell took the case to Spring Street and there was immediate action.

The man is now at The Alfred.

And while it was a good result in the end, Neil Mitchell said it highlighted a worrying flaw in the health care system.

“Sick people should not have to come to the media to get life-saving treatment,” he said.

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