Page 19 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 9 February 2016
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Elective surgery is a major challenge to the government and, indeed, governments right across the nation. We are not unique and we all know that the pressures and challenges on our health system are only going to increase over the next decade. Our location means we also have a responsibility as a tertiary centre to care for residents of our neighbouring regions in New South Wales, who have their most serious and complex surgeries undertaken in ACT hospitals.
Demand for elective surgery services in ACT public hospitals by New South Wales residents is at 30 per cent of the total wait list. This figure is above the general demand for ACT public hospital services required by New South Wales residents, which is closer to 20 per cent. In addition, we have an ageing population; we have a growing population; we have a demographic with more complex conditions. But what we also have is a federal Liberal government who, as it stands today, is planning to rip $57 billion out of health funding nationally, including up to $600 million here in the ACT over the next decade.
This $600 million cut by the federal Liberal government would provide an extra 58,000 elective surgeries alone. That is how significant this devastating cut by the Turnbull Liberal government is and how detrimental it is to our health system.
We are facing uncertain times in relation to our funding. But we also know that, as a government, we have to get on with the job and do our best to improve access to care, particularly in areas like elective surgery. That is why I have announced the latest blitz, which will see a significant improvement for patients on the long wait list. And it is also why the government has a plan for elective surgery more broadly, not just for the next six months but for the coming years.
As I reported to the Assembly earlier, we have already undertaken more than 250 additional procedures to remove people from that long wait elective surgery list, including through additional orthopaedic and vascular surgery cases. Our early success has been in addition to cooperation and willingness by our medical staff, but also through improved processes, especially in relation to theatre utilisation.
The government recognised an opportunity to capitalise on the December-January period, traditionally a quieter time for our public hospitals, to allow for extra access to our operating theatres. As a result, we have already been able to: engage locum doctors where there are gaps, such as in ear, nose and throat procedures; extend operating theatre hours and make more sessions available, including on weekends; appoint an experienced nurse who is acting as the program manager from the territory-wide surgical services team to facilitate and monitor progress and activity; increase the auditing of waiting lists to make sure they are as accurate as possible; and identify and procure additional equipment as part of the funding made available.
But this blitz is only part of the solution. As health minister, I want to make sure that solutions are sustainable for the long term and see people receive care in the clinically recommended time frames. Whilst we will not achieve this outcome overnight, there are a broad range of measures that will make achieving these targets very viable. We have already started to implement a whole suite of measures to maintain these existing levels of activity and see people receive the surgery they need in the long term and to receive it in the time that they need to receive it in.
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