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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 7 Hansard (27 June) . . Page.. 2022 ..

MR MOORE (continuing):

disappointed in recent days that he has chosen to persist in his allegations and reject the conclusions of the review committee. Dare I say that he is now shooting the messenger.

I do not know where this particular affair may end. The participants in this event are now in the hands of the ACT coroner, as is entirely appropriate. The very fact that a coronial inquiry will be held does not, of course, imply that someone must be to blame for the death in question. In fact, my own reading of the reports leads me to suspect that the medical staff concerned did all they might have in a pretty hopeless situation.

What I do know, however, is that by any measured standard the Canberra Hospital is a high-quality hospital. In addition, my own approach to the issue of "adverse incidents" in hospitals has been entirely proactive. I was the first health minister to initiate an inquiry into adverse incidents, and members may well be aware of the report by Fiona Tito which resulted. I spoke to members about that today in answer to a question.

The work has assisted the ACT hospitals to understand what can contribute to such rare incidents and to avoid them. I would hope that all those who wish to comment upon our hospital will find it possible to do so in a mature fashion without resorting to claims which are damaging to public confidence. To this end, I draw members' attention to a summit which the ACT branch of the Australian Medical Association and I will be holding jointly on 20 July. I hope that the occasion will move us beyond the claims and campaigns of the last few weeks to a new approach based on evidence, dialogue and cooperative behaviour.

MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition) (4.08): I will make a very brief response, having just received the report and listened to the minister. I will touch on just a few issues. I think that it is necessary that I do respond to the "holier than thou", "knight on a white charger" image that the minister seeks to project in the conclusion of his speech, having alluded to the motivations of certain people involved in this very serious matter as being simply to advantage themselves in relation to possible ALP preselections and having made the claim that I have suggested that we need simply to throw money and resources at difficulties at the hospital, something that I have never done. Actually, he got quite down in the dirt in the process of his address just now.

Mr Smyth: No, he didn't.

MR STANHOPE: He suggested, for instance, that those who worked for either the nurses union or the doctors union in this matter were motivated in some of their public comments by a desire to position themselves for ALP preselection before the next election. What possible relevance does that have to the serious matter at hand? Absolutely none. In terms of low, spiteful politics, how much more irrelevant and spiteful can you get than that?

In relation to the extent to which the minister does take this matter seriously, I am reminded immediately of his response to questions asked at question time today when he said that a committee of Dr Jeans' peers had found the statements he has made in relation to this matter, through this death review process, as having been patently false.

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