Page 3396 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 11 October 1994
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MR CONNOLLY: Madam Speaker, I give information to this house on the basis of information that is given to me. I can see that the Liberals are moving up to something here. What I have to say is that the amount of raw data that gets gathered in different areas of ACT Health on a given day can say many different things. Trying to actually find out what is going on cannot necessarily be that easy. The information, however, that I have given in relation to throughput remains my view, on the information that I have been given. I was giving it, I think, in relation to some issues about waiting lists. I think the point that I was trying to make at the time was that, in fact, the waiting list, when you look at it against throughput, is such that a couple of months of throughput is the entire waiting list.
Mrs Carnell waxes lyrical about a waiting list of some 4,000. How she would fix that by slashing $30m from the system, she will not explain to anybody.
Mr De Domenico: You keep saying that.
MR CONNOLLY: I keep saying that because it is your policy; it is what you are pledging to do, to slash over $30m - - -
Mr De Domenico: What is your policy? Tell us what your policy is.
MR CONNOLLY: My policy - as has been shown for over six months; as has been the policy of this Government from the time Mr Berry came in and took over the mess that you left behind - was to try to rebuild a health system that had been belted for six by the closure of a major hospital; to try to continue to provide high-quality health services at a hospital that was a major building site; to work hard on quality so that Woden Valley Hospital received national accreditation for the full period of three years, better than a number of equivalent hospitals in New South Wales; and to continue to maintain 24-hour services in areas like accident and emergency. I see that Mr Phillips only last weekend in Sydney was announcing that at least two hospitals would shut their emergency departments at 11.00 pm and reopen them in the morning. That is how well things are going under a Liberal government.
Mr Stefaniak asked, "Did you mislead the Assembly?". No, I did not. I will get from my officials the advice on which I made that assertion. It remains my view, on the advice that I have from my officials, that we are continuing to do very well on monthly throughputs. It is, of course, important to realise that we had a major glitch in November/December of 1993 because we had - - -
Mr Humphries: We are not talking about that.
MR CONNOLLY: We are. If you are looking at over time periods, you have to bear in mind that basic comparison. The advice that I have had from my officials is that we are doing well on throughput. Our efficiencies measures are high. I will check the information that you have now tabled. I will check the advice that I previously received. I will report back to the Assembly in due course and reconcile it.
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