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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 02 Hansard (Thursday, 4 March 2004) . . Page.. 743 ..

injury or illness over the next 24 hours. The nature of an emergency department is that the volume of work is unpredictable. That means that at times of high volume people wait longer.

I can appreciate the concerns of this mother whose letter you quoted from. As a parent I would have exactly the same concerns. But the bottom line is that our hospitals work on a triage arrangement. Those with the most serious illness get the most immediate treatment. I do not think anybody is saying that that should not happen.

For the benefit of members I outline the steps taken by the government to improve resources. That is the question that your constituent asked. In 2002-03 the government increased funding by $300,000 to address the 4 per cent growth in emergency department presentations from the previous financial year. In 2003-04 we provided an additional $420,000 to fund these increasing emergency department presentations. There have been significant increases over the past two years to improve resourcing in our emergency department.

On top of that, we have taken significant other steps at both Calvary Hospital and Canberra Hospital. For example, at the Canberra Hospital a new communications clerk has been stationed within the ED to facilitate patient flows and communications with GPs, freeing up nursing staff to deal with the one on one treatment they need to give, along with medical staff.

Extra wardsmen have been rostered in the ED to assist with heavy patients and to facilitate transport out of the ED. The link service has a clinical liaison nurse stationed in the ED. The nurse aims to see all patients coming into the hospital via ED, and any clients passing through the ED without seeing the clinical liaison nurse are seen in the wards within 24 to 48 hours.

Late last year I opened the new clinical decisions unit at Calvary Hospital, which was established to improve case management of the flow of patients through the accident and emergency department. This allows better service and reduced length of stay. Wherever possible, it allows for people admitted to the ED who do not need to go into a ward time to be observed in a hospital setting prior to their being released to their home.

The government is taking significant steps. Emergency departments will always be busy places. Emergency departments will always face questions at a particular time during the year. But the bottom line is that, on nationally agreed data, our treatment times are some of the best in the country. The government is increasing funding to our emergency department to meet the growth that is occurring.

MRS CROSS: Is the minister prepared to stick his neck out and not settle for being right at the top of the waiting list—in other words being the least longest waiting list—

Ms MacDonald: I rise on a point of order. This is a preamble.

MRS CROSS: No, it is a question, which started with, “Are you prepared”. Listen. Are you as a minister prepared to stick your neck out and not settle for being one of the best waiting lists in Australia and show the Canberra community that you put its interests first

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