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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 06 Hansard (Wednesday, 23 June 2004) . . Page.. 2479 ..

The minute is dated 20 May. That has already happened. The minister has effectively today confirmed that that was probably the intention all along. I think it is abundantly clear from everything we have heard today that it is a bad decision. Members should not be taken in by this petulant, idle threat of the minister. The minister has to act in accordance with the Assembly’s wishes. We have a duty to act on behalf of the community. If members are not going to support Mr Smyth’s motion they will be failing in their duty.

MR CORNWELL (11.52): We appear to have stirred up a hornet’s nest. It is a pity that the Minister for Health and Minister for Planning is not present to listen to the debate on this matter. I was interested to hear his so-called defence. He attacked my colleague Mr Smyth for attempting to micro-manage the health system. At least Mr Smyth is trying to manage it. Mr Corbell said that we will lose 40 transitional care beds. Whose fault is that? This man has been the Minister for Health and Minister for Planning for 2½ years and what have we seen in that time? Mr Hargreaves commented that we are trying to drive a wedge between rehabilitation and nursing home patients. Your minister, Mr Corbell, has effectively driven a wedge between acute care patients and nursing home patients by taking up beds that should have been used for acute care.

Mr Hargreaves: They are not nursing home beds.

MR CORNWELL: I am talking about public hospitals.

Mr Hargreaves: Yes. They are not nursing home beds.

MR CORNWELL: Yes. I am happy to back up my statement. I have some figures here that turned up yesterday.

Mr Hargreaves: They are nursing home type beds.

MR CORNWELL: Just a moment. You complained earlier about interjections, Mr Hargreaves. I suggest that you practise what you preach. I asked the following questions of the Minister for Health:

1. How many nursing home type patients, who should not be in hospital beds … are currently in the (a) Calvary and (b) Canberra hospitals;

2. What has been the daily average number of such patients in hospital beds in the A.C.T. each month for the past 12 months;

3. What is the current cost per day for accommodating such patients in hospital beds in the ACT?

Yesterday I received an answer on the Canberra Hospital average nursing home type inpatients per month: in July last year there was not a figure; in August there were 23; in September, 21; in October, 13; in November, 27; in December, 11; in January, 9—that is probably explained by the fact that there is generally a decrease over the Christmas period—in February, 7; in March, 23; and in April, 21—a monthly average of 17.2.

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