Page 3427 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 25 November 1992
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Mr Moore also suggested that the Queen Elizabeth II home for mothers and babies should be moved to the Acton Peninsula. Mr Moore is obviously not aware of the views of the Canberra Mothercraft Society. This is the group that runs and manages the QE II home for mothers and babies. They do not want to move to Acton Peninsula; they would rather keep their central location in Civic.
Mr De Domenico: But you disregard that because that view happens to be contrary to yours!
MRS CARNELL: That is right; we do not like that. The president of the Canberra Mothercraft Society has cited the following reasons for wanting to remain in Civic: Firstly, there is its proximity to the ACT transport system and to the bus interchange, and, secondly, its closeness to shops, retailing and other centres of activity. They say that this actually serves a therapeutic purpose because it breaks down the isolation recovering patients may feel in some institutional environments. Thirdly, it is adjacent to other health facilities provided by ACT Health - that is, the City Health Centre. Fourthly, incorporating the QE II home for mothers and babies into the old Canberra hospital building would run counter to the purposes and practices of the present hospital. That is what the group that is actually running QE II says, but of course we will disregard them. Clearly, this is another facility that should not be transferred to the Acton Peninsula, at least under the sort of arrangements envisaged by Mr Moore.
There are others on this list that would also be terribly inappropriately located at Acton - for instance, the clinical school. This clearly must be part of Woden Valley Hospital. Mr Moore has evidently not understood the full rationale for a clinical school. In fact, part of the rationale for the clinical school is the enhancement of the nature and quality of the services at Woden Valley Hospital. We are trying to develop Woden Valley Hospital as a centre of excellence, and there are many benefits that we all know will flow from this. Since we are concerned with Woden Valley Hospital, it is obviously not appropriate to locate the school elsewhere, such as at Acton. Certainly, the medical school may need the facilities of the ANU or possibly the John Curtin School for research facilities, but I am not sure that these facilities which are provided on campus cannot also be used for a clinical school that is based at Woden Valley Hospital.
I am more than ready to support proposals to establish chairs of community medicine and of rehabilitation and aged care, because I believe that the focus of the medical school must be relevant to the Canberra community. It would be knowledge of great practical value to Canberrans and would allow the medical school to differentiate itself from medical schools in other parts of the country. All the same, I cannot agree at this stage - and I emphasise "at this stage" - that these chairs of medicine should be located at Acton Peninsula. I would not like to pre-empt, as others obviously like doing, proper consideration of this important issue.
The hospice should certainly not be located at Acton Peninsula, and I have spoken on this issue time and time again in this house. It undermines the chances of developing an integrated, holistic palliative care service - something that is absolutely essential to Canberra. The hospice should be co-located on the
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