Page 3146 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 22 August 2012
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avoided. It was avoided as a consequence of the Chief Minister’s leadership and clear and decisive action on that front. The claim by the Leader of the Opposition, the claim by the Liberal Party, on that matter cannot be substantiated.
Let us be very clear about who is responsible for what occurred in relation to data manipulation at the Canberra Hospital. It was the actions of a senior officer. The Auditor-General makes it clear there was no direct or indirect instruction by any other person, including the Minister for Health. The Auditor-General is explicit. The Chief Minister was not involved in the actions by this senior officer. The Chief Minister was not responsible, directly or indirectly, for the actions of this officer. And that is the view of the Auditor-General.
Hospitals are complex institutions—thousands of staff, thousands of patients every year. Regrettably, things sometimes go wrong in complex systems. We have heard the opposition talk about some of those cases today. The government has always been sympathetic to the concerns of individuals when they have seen mistakes made in the health system. But there is no health system that does not see mistakes made. The crucial thing is that when mistakes are made they are tackled, they are addressed, and systems are improved. It has been this health minister and this government that have made those investments and taken those actions. It was not this government that closed 114 beds like the previous Liberal government did.
Mr Hanson interjecting—
MR CORBELL: This Labor government—
MR SPEAKER: Order! One moment, Mr Corbell. Stop the clocks, thank you. Members, I remind you that the Deputy Speaker was very clear on the expectations about the conduct of this debate. Mr Corbell, you have the floor.
MR CORBELL: It was the Liberal government that closed 114 beds. That was their legacy last time they were in government—114 fewer beds in our hospital system because of the decisions of those opposite and their predecessors. It was not this government that blew up a hospital, resulting in the tragic death of a young Canberra woman. It was a Liberal government that made that decision. And it was not this government that failed to invest in the essential health infrastructure that our community needs. This government made those tough decisions. This Chief Minister, this Minister for Health, set out a comprehensive plan for the future of Canberra’s health system.
The Auditor-General in her report highlights the changes that have occurred from the old Woden Valley to the new Canberra Hospital and the fact that moving from a small, regional, almost district hospital, as it is referred to in the Auditor-General’s report, to a large, complex, tertiary treatment centre is a big cultural change. It is not an easy cultural change, but it is the change that has been led by this Minister for Health.
We have invested in more elective surgery and in more beds. We did not close them; we opened them. There were 640 when the Liberal Party left office and there are 926 today. We invested in more cancer services. People do not have to travel to
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