Page 3666 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 20 October 1993
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Mr Moore, in the course of his discussions with me this morning, raised a couple of other issues that I said I would respond to in brief. The centre is managed on behalf of the ACT Government by the ACT branch of the Royal Life Saving Society under a contract of management. The contract is for five years, expiring on 30 September 1996. Under the contract the society is paid an operational subsidy of $42,000 per annum. This is reviewed and adjusted annually according to movements in the consumer price index.
In relation to the money that we have spent on that centre, a major upgrade of the centre was completed in 1992, which you probably recall being mentioned in one way or another in the budget process. That included expenditure of $740,000 on plant improvements, painting, elimination of leakages and the provision of shade cover over the children's pool. I understand that at the request of the pool management no work was carried out on the boiler at that time. The boiler is a problem which we are not happy about. Of course, you are never happy when these sorts of intermittent problems occur, but we are on the ball trying to sort the problem out in conjunction with the management at the pool.
Hospital Services
MR HUMPHRIES: My question is addressed to the Minister for Health. In the memo of 11 October that has been referred to already today, details of the hospital shutdown for this coming Christmas were announced. I understand from that memo that for the period from 18 December to 3 January 185 beds are to be closed compared with 184 last year; from 4 January to 17 January, 141 beds compared with 161 last year; from 18 January to 24 January, 124 beds compared with only 37 last year; and from 24 January to 31 January, 124 beds compared with none last year. Last year a saving of $1.15m was achieved by closing for four weeks. Since the Minister cannot tell us by how much the waiting lists are going to grow as a result of the projected closure next Christmas, can he tell us how much will be saved by the closure of six weeks he is projecting for this coming Christmas?
MR BERRY: Again Mr Humphries avoids the issue of how many people we are going to treat. We have been provided with resources to treat 50,500 people in the full year. That is an expanded number of services and we have been provided - - -
Mrs Carnell: No. It is the same as last year.
MR BERRY: Wait a minute. It also includes a fairly large growth in other services as well. As in previous years - and I have explained this to Mr Kaine - there will be a planned reduction in elective services at Woden Valley and Calvary public hospitals over the Christmas-New Year holiday period. The closures are virtually identical to those in previous years. The period of reduction in services will be between 18 December 1993 and 31 January 1994 at Woden, and between 21 December 1993 and 18 January 1994 at Calvary public hospital. During these times the number of beds and operating theatres available in the public hospital system will be reduced to a level that is in line with the reduction in elective services.
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