IMMUNISATION CLINIC GENERAL PRACTICE

Ms CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (14:53): My question is again to the Minister for Health. Why is the Immunisation Clinic General Practice at the Women's and Children's Hospital being closed at Christmas? The clinic is a private bulk billing facility, with immunisation as a major focus. The service is still being promoted on the hospital website.

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health, Minister for the Southern Suburbs, Minister Assisting the Premier in the Arts) (14:54): There is a private clinic at the Women's and Children's Hospital. I understand that it has been there for a number of years. It is a private clinic, it is not a public clinic: it is not run by the state, so we are not closing a private clinic. The clinic provided two sorts of services. One was immunisation. Those services have now been transferred to the hospital generally, so the hospital will provide them through a public system rather than through a private system.

The other services provided through the clinic were services to the people who worked in the hospital, which was very convenient for them, I agree, but not all of us have our own doctor (perhaps the Premier does) in our workplace. There are plenty of other doctors available to people who work at the Women's and Children's Hospital. The reason it is closing is because it cannot run at a profit, given its current scale. There is not sufficient room in the hospital for it to expand and, as a result, a decision has been made for it to close.