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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 9 Hansard (2 September) . . Page.. 2816 ..
MR OSBORNE: I move:
That the Tuggeranong Lakeshore Master Plan be referred to the Standing Committee on Urban Services for inquiry and report.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
MR MOORE (Minister for Health and Community Care): For the information of members, I present information bulletins relating to patient activity data for the Calvary Public Hospital and the Canberra Hospital for June and July 1999.
MR MOORE (Minister for Health and Community Care): Mr Speaker, I ask for the leave of the Assembly to make a ministerial statement on the outcomes of the Australian Health Ministers Conference held in Canberra on 4 August 1999.
Leave granted.
MR MOORE: The Australian Health Ministers Conference was held in Canberra on 4 August 1999. During the conference, Commonwealth, State and Territory Health Ministers agreed on a number of measures which will drive an agenda for an evolutionary and incremental approach to health reform. This approach by Health Ministers provides a significant opportunity for improvement in the organisation and delivery of health services across Australia.
Coordinated care was one of the key elements of the agreed agenda. There are nine coordinated care trials under way in five States and Territories, including Care Plus in the ACT. The ACT is proud to be involved in this initiative, which emphasises the needs of the consumer and aims to develop effective partnerships between general practitioners and non-medical primary and community care.
Early findings of the evaluation of the nine current trials were considered. I am pleased to say that the commitment of Health Ministers to supporting further trials will ensure a national approach to serious health reform. Trials will be extended over the next four years. In addition to exploring ways to involve residential aged care services and the use of private health insurance, new trials will have a particular focus on primary care. The approach is aimed at benefiting those with chronic or complex needs, many of whom are elderly.
Quality and safety in health care was another key element. The Australian Council for Safety and Quality in Health Care will be established. The council will coordinate a national response to the recommendations of the national expert advisory group on
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