Page 1268 - Week 04 - Thursday, 21 March 2013
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People have told me those stories. But equally, I have heard the stories of people waiting for much longer periods of time. The triage system is certainly set up so that the more serious patients are treated first but, of course, the flow-on effect of this is that if you only have a minor injury or ailment, then it can be a long wait indeed.
In my view the solution to this does not rest solely in making our ED more efficient, as Mr Hanson likes to suggest, although that could help and I am sure there are improvements to be made. One way I think there is scope to make a difference in our health system is in walk-in centres. We have all heard about the success of the nurse-led ACT Health walk-in centre at the Canberra Hospital. We have heard Mr Hanson’s flip-flop on this issue. Firstly, he wanted to scrap it. Then he wants to roll them out across Canberra.
The Greens, on the other hand, have been consistent. As we understand it, nurse-led walk-in centres can help prevent minor illnesses turning into something more serious down the track. We know that nurse-practitioner clinics have been successful overseas, particularly in the UK. The early success of the walk-in centre at Woden and the high level of consumer satisfaction show that this model should be expanded in the ACT. This is important, given that there will be an increase in demand for acute services in the years to come. I hope that all three parties now agree that it is a good model, one which reduces pressure on our emergency rooms, one that should be echoed in Tuggeranong and Belconnen as priorities.
A review of the centre in 2011 found that, while the walk-in centre is an innovative and positive step, it would be more successful if it was not located at the Canberra Hospital. It seems that the issue of increasing category 5 patients at the emergency department is potentially a result of referrals from the walk-in centre. This can be overcome by relocating the centre away from Canberra Hospital, together with increasing the scope of practice of the nurses. Nurse practitioners are highly qualified and should be enabled to use their full qualifications, skills and training. It does not make sense to reduce the application of these skills.
Having now said how well the ACT health system works, the Greens believe that there are a number of small investments which can be made which will improve people’s access and interaction with the current system. Some of these have been included in the Greens-ALP parliamentary agreement.
The agreement outlines work to be undertaken in conjunction with ACT Medicare Local and other specialised primary healthcare organisations to commence a mobile primary health clinic by 2015 to target disadvantaged groups within the community. This was part of the Greens election initiatives to directly provide medical care to people who are unable to access primary care services in order to improve health outcomes and quality of life for vulnerable people who have difficulty engaging medical assistance at an early stage.
This is a great way to provide health care to people before they become acutely unwell and this eases the demands on the hospital system. Unfortunately, many vulnerable people do not seek help when an illness first presents due to difficulties
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