Page 1949 - Week 07 - Thursday, 23 August 2007
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investments. Investments largely come by increasing funding. The funding is then used to employ nurses, establish beds and create wards that will provide the services. We have done that every single year.
In terms of the emergency department, again we have invested in the emergency department. We are seeing 100,000 presentations a year through our emergency department. That is not something that you ever saw in government. These are the figures of today: 100,000 people coming and needing help through our emergency department. On measures of when people are seen, timely access to treatment and the appropriateness of that treatment, we perform the best in the country.
In terms of the public confidence in our health system, we have the highest utilisation of public hospitals of anywhere in the country bar the Northern Territory—and they stick out for their own reason. We have the highest level of private health cover and the highest incomes, and people still want to come to the public hospitals. Why? Because that is where they know they are going to get excellent treatment.
You cannot sit here and say that our investments in health have not delivered a better health system. Our health system is delivering more than it has ever delivered in the past. Year on year on year, every statistic shows improvements in access, in growth and in dealing with complex cases. In terms of access to emergency treatment, we are the first in the country. These are the stats that you do not want to hear about.
MR SPEAKER: Is there a supplementary question?
MR MULCAHY: Minister, why have previous plans or strategies put in place by your government to tackle the issues I identified in my question failed so badly?
MS GALLAGHER: If you had listened to my answer to your question, you would have heard that they have not. I do not have control over the waiting list. If someone is sick and goes to their doctor, and their doctor says, “You need some surgery,” they go on the waiting list. The only thing I can deliver on is removals from the list.
Mr Mulcahy: What about theatre utilisation?
MS GALLAGHER: Theatre utilisation?
MR SPEAKER: Never mind the interjections.
MS GALLAGHER: I should not bite, but he raises a good point. Theatre utilisation: we have extended operating theatres; we have commissioned the ninth and 10th operating theatres. All of that is paid for through our increasing investment in health. In terms of access to elective surgery, you are right: you need access to theatres. So what have we done? We have increased the number of theatres that we can utilise. It does raise a question about what we are going to do in the future, which is why we do this planning work. We are now operating at full steam.
Mr Mulcahy: The same length of hours—
MR SPEAKER: Order, Mr Mulcahy! You have asked your question.
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