Page 3007 - Week 10 - Thursday, 15 September 1994
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Health Services
MR CORNWELL: I would like to bring this question time back to matters of relevance to this Territory. My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Health. Despite his efforts to deny people the opportunity to air grievances, I would refer the Minister to the case of an elderly North Canberra resident who was discharged from Woden Valley Hospital three weeks ago on a ventilator. This woman was discharged because the hospital told her that they needed the bed for more serious cases. The woman is on oxygen regularly and is unable to look after herself. She lives with her husband, who is aged 75 and who cannot look after her as he recently had triple bypass heart surgery. The couple are fixed income superannuants and find the cost of arranging their own domiciliary services almost prohibitive. They were told when the woman was discharged that they were on the waiting list for home help; but as yet, three weeks later, they are still waiting. My question, Minister, is: How long will this couple have to wait for home help? Why was the woman discharged into a home environment where she could not look after herself? Would you mind telling me what on earth a complaint to the health ombudsman is going to do about that?
Mr Berry: Madam Speaker, on a point of order: Mr Cornwell is good at raising individual cases. How on earth can anybody defend that sort of approach? Why do you always raise - - -
Mr Cornwell: Because it embarrasses you, does it not? I have every right to do so.
Mr Berry: No, it does not.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order! I call the Minister.
MR CONNOLLY: Madam Speaker, I think we actually detect here that, for the first time, the Liberal Party has a strategy for question time. That is very good. Mrs Carnell, under pressure and embarrassed earlier in the week, has obviously been told by her party room colleagues to lift the game; and we have a strategy. The strategy is to ask questions about private individuals' health status and the details of their individual hospital treatments and experiences.
I, obviously, cannot answer those questions here in the Assembly. I do not have access to the individual patient files. I do not know the individual patient names. If the Opposition were serious about advancing the cause of constituents they would approach me, give me the information, and let me try to find an answer. We established a Health Complaints Unit in order to provide citizens of this Territory with an independent, arm's length and powerful complaints mechanism to investigate exactly these sorts of matters. But the Liberal Party does not want to do that; of course, they want to play their little political stunts.
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