Page 1267 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 16 April 1991
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
hospital system. It certainly appears to me that he is far more concerned with cheap political stunts, as usual. However, I will say that he will get his briefing, notwithstanding his behaviour, because this Government is not afraid to make the facts known and available.
Hospitals - Waiting Lists
MS FOLLETT: I am delighted to know that we might get that appointment, because my attempt to get an appointment with Mr Collaery has not succeeded.
I have a question for Mr Humphries, as Minister for Health. I ask Mr Humphries: What will the Government do to prevent the massive blow-out in waiting time which will result from your proposed reduction of orthopaedic surgery beds from 36 beds to 21 beds, given that the waiting lists for orthopaedic surgery are already long?
MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, I have to say, as I have said about other claims and allegations made in this place, that I do not accept the assertions that emanate from the opposition benches that any cuts are proposed to particular areas, until I check them for myself. It may be that there are reductions - - -
Ms Follett: You do not know? Ask any nurse or doctor.
MR HUMPHRIES: I do not know, off the top of my head, what is going on in the orthopaedic section. I do not know whether the beds Ms Follett is talking about are beds only in the principal hospital or whether they take into account beds also in the Calvary Hospital. I do not know. Ms Follett is shaking her head. I assume that she does not know either.
The fact is, Mr Speaker, that we have to be very careful before we make accusations of this kind. I do not expect massive blow-outs, as Ms Follett puts it. I see every reason for us to be able to manage the changes in our hospital system very well. And I would point out, in fact, that there is - - -
Mr Berry: There are 1,500 waiting for a bed. You are managing it very well?
MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, Mr Berry has not had the benefit of talking to other Ministers for Health about problems in other places in Australia. If he had, he would probably realise that, in fact, the problems facing the ACT public hospital system are very similar to those being faced by other systems elsewhere in this country. I think, in fact, that our position is actually much better than has been alleged by those opposite. I have information about the admission numbers in our hospital system, which are a more accurate way, I suspect, of assessing the throughput in our
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .