Page 3221 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 22 August 2012
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working, then there would be absolutely no need for any individual to feel pressured, politically influenced, to make these changes and then tamper with and change 11,700 documents.
If what the Chief Minister said this morning was in any way credible, that they have improved the system, then why did an individual feel the need to tamper with whatever her share was of the 11,700 records? And clearly there is at least one other individual, because it started before that individual was in a position to do that. If things are as good as the Chief Minister and health minister says, there would be no need for the tampering to have occurred and there would be no need for this report to be on the table today. So clearly there is a problem.
I clearly suggest to the Chief Minister that she read page 23 of the auditor’s report that says there has been an overall decline in performance over the last 10 years and actually take into account what is required by the people of the ACT and not her own political future, do the right thing and make sure that these recommendations, as far as she can before October, are implemented.
MR HANSON (Molonglo) (4.52): I think it is ironic, disappointing and shameful probably that, in the space of an afternoon, we find ourselves talking to two PAC reports about failure so endemic in this system—first on elective surgery, now on our emergency department. As Mr Smyth has highlighted, the Auditor-General found that there had been a decade of decline in our emergency department. But what the report has been unable to provide is any sign of what the truth is about what the state of our emergency department is. We have this extraordinary situation where, through the estimates process and through the PAC inquiry and even as we sit here today, we still do not know what the state of our emergency department is, because the fabrication has been so extensive.
What I think is important to note from this report is what led to this situation in the first place. Why did this happen? Why did this dreadful situation eventuate? It is quite clear that it was a political imperative to make the numbers look good. And there are a litany of quotes that form part of the Auditor-General’s report. But the Auditor-General found that the performance of the emergency department was of significant interest to the community, to the media and to the Legislative Assembly.
Indeed, about a year ago the Chief Minister came out with her own report card to say: “Don’t listen to the AIHW. Here you go. I’ve got some new statistics.” And I will quote:
I’m pleased to see the report card for August 2011 showing solid improvements in performance by the Canberra Hospital.
And she made much political capital of that. I think you would be aware that there has been an ongoing debate about the performance of the Canberra Hospital and the health system. I make no apology for having been highly critical about a number of aspects of our health system. So the Chief Minister then made great political capital. She came into the Assembly. She put out media releases to say that she was fixing the system, when she was not, when it was based on a fabrication.
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