Page 2029 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 7 June 2017
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
The hospital will expand both physically and in terms of its service delivery capabilities, with additional maternity beds, additional paediatric high dependency unit beds, a new paediatric intensive care treatment space and an adolescent gynaecology service. This funding to expand the Centenary hospital will also provide more birthing beds and staff to care for women during pregnancy, during birth and into the postnatal period. This will ensure that Canberrans receive a high-level state-of-the-art maternity service in a centre of excellence in women’s and children’s health for our region.
We are also investing a brand-new hospital building. At the election, Labor committed to strengthening our hospital care by constructing the new surgical procedures, interventional radiology and emergency centre, the SPIRE centre, at the Canberra Hospital. SPIRE will transform the Canberra Hospital campus and enhance the delivery of hospital-based health care in a modern, purpose-built facility. It will boost the number of operating theatres from 13 to 20, providing ample increased capacity and allowing for concurrent management of emergency and elective surgeries, avoiding delays and rescheduling.
With the new expanded emergency department at Canberra Hospital, the current ED will be dedicated to providing specialist emergency health care for women and children. The two EDs will operate as one, with separate entrances to provide the best experience for Canberrans using these services. This budget starts the important planning work and design work on the SPIRE centre. We will provide $236 million, allocated over the next four years, which is happening at the same time as we are investing in light rail. We can do both at once.
The budget also delivers $17.3 million for significant upgrades to acute aged care and cancer facilities at the Canberra Hospital to provide better patient care and comfort. This important work will continue to build our hospital to meet the needs of Canberrans and our whole region.
Awareness around youth mental health issues has reached a new high in the community, and it is important that this forward-thinking government demonstrates a commitment to specialist help. One of the key issues raised with me at the election was youth mental health. I was proud that Labor committed at the election to expanding the hospital to provide a dedicated adolescent mental health unit. We will deliver on this commitment through the expansion of the Centenary hospital, which will provide a specialist acute mental healthcare space, with planning starting in 2017-18. This initiative demonstrates the government’s commitment to expanding inpatient mental healthcare services for vulnerable young people in our region, specifically benefiting health outcomes for these individuals.
Three million dollars will be invested in the budget to expand the child and adolescent mental health service consultation liaison service within the Canberra Hospital; it will now operate seven days per week. New funding will fund the CAMHS primary school intervention program, enhancing case management and coordination of support
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video