Page 1088 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 30 March 2011
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
lists are a very important issue and a very important part of the health system, I acknowledge what Ms Gallagher has said in that there are other equally important issues which do not get the attention they should.
I am concerned that, while matters like elective surgery and the emergency department are important, there are other areas within our health system which are neglected. These are areas which do not provide an easy number or an easy figure to quote and they do not make for easy headlines. We note there are a number of areas here. Ms Gallagher has said that when she has been to the emergency department they express some frustration about the focus being on elective surgery. I acknowledge that frustration. It is a frustration which I also feel because there are other important health issues which I do not think receive the attention that they should.
For example, preventive health measures are a much harder thing to communicate and to show a target or a number for, but they are really important. They take in things like health and fitness and addressing obesity, which has a big impact on diabetes. That is just an example. As well, of course, there is mental health—something which I often talk about. It is a really key area but, again, it is not something which necessarily gets the big headlines or the attention. Aged-care services is another one. Measures such as rehabilitation and step-up, step-down facilities are really important parts of the health system. There is ambulatory care as well. I know that is something which the ACT does particularly well. I acknowledge the frustration but, again, I acknowledge, as Mr Hanson’s motion does, that these figures around elective surgery are not particularly good for the ACT. We have to acknowledge that. Paragraph (1)(a) states:
… that in the Minister’s Foreword to ACT Health’s ACT Public Health Services Quarterly Performance Report December 2010, the Minister claims that the report shows that the increased investment in the Territory’s public health services is working to provide better access to care;
This is a factual statement. It is a statement which is taken directly from the report. Paragraph 1(b) states:
that the Quarterly Performance Report December 2010 shows that:
(i) elective surgery waiting times have deteriorated across all three categories …
There have been increases in waiting times across all the categories. That is actually a fact which we have to acknowledge. That statement is true. Looking at page 7 of the quarterly report it is also fair to say, as I have already said, that the number of elective surgeries being performed has also increased. That is also a factor which needs to be acknowledged. The government makes it clear via this quarterly report and the report to the Australian government for the national elective surgery waiting list reduction plan that there is a focus on removing patients who have had the longest wait. I can see how this would affect the waiting list statistics.
The Greens, for example, have a specific interest in shared waiting lists for doctors. This is an issue on which consumers agree. I also imagine that this has an impact and is a factor which affects waiting lists also. Again, we need to acknowledge that there
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video