Page 1061 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 19 March 2013
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the same, the sort of stuff that drips out after an election. In the lead-up to the election, no such mention.
Some of the quotes we got from Ms Gallagher going back to 2008 included, “Creating a new tower block that will contain acute ward areas and operating theatres, intensive care.” All of that would be within a new tower block. “A key component.” “Once the new tower block is built, the helipad will be on top.” “The design of the enhanced facility for Canberra Hospital, including the replacement and redevelopment of infrastructure, is needed to support the sustainable health system to ensure the safety and availability and viability of quality health care in the ACT.”
This is the media release from the budget 2011-12:
This investment provides $41 million to progress the next stage of planning and design for new infrastructure such as a new tower block at The Canberra Hospital which will be designed to accommodate the majority of all inpatient activity at the hospital in the future. This new tower block will ensure—
will ensure, Mr Assistant Speaker—
that our tertiary referral hospital is able to meet projected increases in inpatient bed numbers in a modern hospital setting able to provide health care in the safest and most efficient way.
Quite a bit of spin there, is it not? And then we have got, “Government rejects slash and burn approaches,” talking about this investment again. And then in a puff piece in the Canberra Times in 2011 repeating that, “The new tower block will ensure our tertiary referral hospital is able to meet projected increases in inpatient bed numbers,” and so on. In question time, or was it annual reports, “Including the design work for the new tower block which will be designing essentially the major new part of the acute system in which it is built.”
On and on it goes, Mr Assistant Speaker. “The complete rebuilding of the tower block at Canberra Hospital.” “It is required in order to enable expansion of digital information systems.” “The ageing tower block needs to be demolished.” “New hospital plans to address an alien system.” “Massive capital works, including plans for a new hospital.” “The agenda in the lead-up to the October ACT election.” “Planning to begin in earnest for the replacement of the hospital’s main building with a new tower block which will include an intensive care unit.” So, what you see there is a whole lot of spin—this is the plan; this is locked in; this is desperately needed in the lead-up to an election, but then not so much after it.
Remember Dr Peter Hughes from Curtin—he is the bloke who wrote to Jon Stanhope calling on Katy Gallagher to be sacked, saying she did not have the confidence of the visiting medical officers. What did he say in a letter of 2012? He said:
It is up to the ACT government to justify the expensive vandalism in its proposal to demolish the tower block of the 40-year-old Canberra Hospital.
Maybe Katy Gallagher is listening to Peter Hughes, which would be an interesting scenario, would it not? But on and on the government have been telling us they are
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