Page 3073 - Week 07 - Thursday, 1 July 2010
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This budget will see bed numbers in the ACT grow to almost 900. You will see from the reports released by the AIHW and the state of our hospitals report released yesterday that we are now third in the country as opposed to eighth for the number of beds per capita. That has taken us eight or nine years to deal with in terms of ramping up our bed numbers, dealing with the shortage of bed numbers that existed under the previous government and making sure we have got bed numbers for the future.
I look at the activity in the bed numbers every day in our hospital—how many are open, what is the demand, how many people are in the discharge lounge, how many people are waiting for beds, how many beds are available at different points, where are the beds available across the hospital? When I started in this job, at Canberra Hospital you had about 380 to 390 beds open on a particular day. As standard operating practice now on a non-busy day at Canberra Hospital there would be around 430 to 440 beds open every day, and that is not dealing with peaks in demand, particularly during winter.
This budget also has some capital allocations for delivering the infrastructure program at Canberra and Calvary hospitals but also for community health centres. There is some money for a refurbishment of the Tuggeranong community health centre, which I did not hear Mr Smyth talk about but I know, being the proud local member he is, that he welcomes that funding and will no doubt be there cheering at the opening when that new service opens.
Mr Hanson: Just before the election, no doubt. You’ll be there for the good news, but not the bad news, won’t you, minister.
MS GALLAGHER: That is right, Mr Hanson.
Mr Hanson: It’s true.
MS GALLAGHER: Yes, very true.
Mr Hanson: “A spokesman for the minister.”
MS GALLAGHER: That is right, because there is so much good news in the Health portfolio.
Mr Hanson: Whenever anything opens, you’re always there.
MS GALLAGHER: That is right, I have not actually seen that much, but it is—
Mr Hanson: “A spokesperson for the minister.”
MR SPEAKER: Mr Hanson, thank you.
MS GALLAGHER: We will let Mr Hanson live on in his happy little dream world where he is the Minister for Health and everything is rosy and everybody is happy.
Mr Hanson: It is a very happy world.
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