Page 215 - Week 01 - Thursday, 15 December 2016
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system should be responsive to them. We are also bringing health care closer to home by expanding the capacity of the hospital in the home service, employing more doctors and nurses and delivering the services via our community health centres. This will allow approximately 3,000 additional patients to receive hospital-level care outside the acute care environment.
To build on the success of existing community health services, the government has committed to open an additional three nurse-led walk-in centres, and we will also develop a new family assistance fund to provide financial support for parents to be with their child when accessing interstate tertiary children’s hospitals and services.
This government has worked hard to encourage bulk-billing practices into the ACT and we will improve access to bulk-billing in all areas and particularly in Tuggeranong and Molonglo Valley. I have asked ACT Health to commence the design work for a capital grants program that will support greater bulk-billing by general practitioners in Tuggeranong and Molonglo valley.
The government is, of course, aware of the need to invest in health infrastructure to ensure we can meet the increasing demand on our services and to seize the opportunities that new technology and innovation provide. Consecutive Labor governments have invested in world-class health facilities: the Canberra Region Cancer Centre; new community health centres in Gungahlin, Belconnen and Tuggeranong; the adult mental health unit; the Centenary Hospital for Women and Children; we have our two popular and successful walk-in centres in Tuggeranong and Belconnen; and last month Mr Rattenbury opened the Dhulwa Mental Health Unit, which provides a safe clinical and therapeutic environment for adults with complex mental health needs.
This year we have seen the opening of key areas within the expanded emergency department at Canberra Hospital, and I look forward to that work being completed next week. I would like to make special mention here of the ED staff and contractors undertaking this work. Undertaking a $24 million upgrade of an existing ED is a significant challenge, exceptionally well handled by all involved. It has been wonderful to see the new paediatric area, meaning children and their families now have a dedicated waiting area; the new discharge area, meaning people with less acute conditions can be seen more quickly; the additional ambulance bays; and the transformed general waiting area.
The Canberra Hospital ED continues to be busy. Indeed it is the ninth busiest emergency department in Australia. At the same time, our waiting times are improving and there has been a significant reduction in the number of patients waiting for imaging and ultrasound services at the Canberra Hospital.
The construction of the new University of Canberra public hospital is also well underway and when opened in 2018 will be Canberra’s third public hospital. This will transform our health system, most notably for those patients needing rehabilitation services. A purpose-built, state-of-the-art hospital will take the pressure off Canberra Hospital and provide dedicated rehabilitative care for patients.
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