HOSPITALS, FUNDING

Mr BIGNELL (Mawson) (14:57): My question is to the Minister for Health. How will redevelopments planned for hospital facilities in the southern suburbs improve the experience of patients, and has the minister been surprised by some of the reaction to these announcements?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Southern Suburbs, Minister Assisting the Premier in the Arts) (14:58): I thank the—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Do you want to hear the minister's answer or not?

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I thank the member for Mawson for his first act of assisting me in these areas.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Thank you, very kind. It is a thing a bloke can do. Every single hospital in Adelaide, I am proud to say, is being redeveloped, or will be redeveloped, under this government. In southern Adelaide, work continues on the $163 million redevelopment of the Flinders Medical Centre, that is renewing all the service areas of the hospital: a new obstetrics wing and cardiac ward have already been opened; a new emergency department is currently under construction; and 12 new theatres will also be built.

Last week I officially opened an expanded intensive and critical care unit, which has increased from 24 to 32 beds and will provide intensive care to more than 2,100 patients each year. At the same time, I opened a new 30-bed acute medical unit, known as an AMU, which was partly funded under the COAG emergency department agreement, and I am very pleased that the commonwealth has provided resources to us to help improve service in our emergency departments.

Acute medical units have the specialist staff and equipment to work alongside emergency department staff to look after patients who are in a stable condition medically, but who may need close attention and treatment for up to 48 hours. Acute medical units are an important component of meeting the government's ambitious target of 95 per cent of patients to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival at an emergency department. I was surprised to hear the opposition spokesperson, the member for Morphett, tell ABC News:

What we're seeing with the acute medical unit in the Flinders Medical Centre is a copying by the Labor Government of South Australia—

that part is true—

of a failed British system.

That part is not true—

This did nothing to reduce waiting times in emergency departments in England.

It defies belief that the opposition spokesman would oppose a policy that is aimed to reduce waiting times. It is also a policy, I have to say, that the Liberal government in Western Australia announced and is implementing, and they announced it before we did, but they were right and we followed suit. It is now a national policy; COAG has taken it up as well. It is less surprising that the opposition spokesman got his facts wrong. He has a track record in that regard.

Data from the UK National Health Service website shows that, by December 2009, 97.82 per cent of patients in England were admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours. As a result of this 'failed policy', 97.82 per cent were admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours. Prior to the introduction of this target, in the time January to March 2003, the figure was 82.4 per cent, so it was a vast improvement as a result of this policy.

The policy works have not been abandoned, as has been suggested by the member, in the UK, but the target has been changed to make it 95 per cent of patients. That is the target we have adopted in our state. It is consistent with what we have adopted, and the reason it was changed in Britain was to reduce the risk of patients being pushed through the emergency department before they are ready to leave. We accept that. That is why we have set a target of 95 per cent. So it has achieved its goal in Britain, and we are very confident it will assist us to reduce waiting times in South Australia, too.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! It is very hard to hear the minister.

The Hon. J.D. HILL: At the Repatriation General Hospital, a $40 million redevelopment negotiated as part of the COAG health reform package will provide that hospital with a brand new 120-bed facility and combine teaching, research, aged care and rehabilitation services in one location. This is groundbreaking work which will create an absolutely fantastic centre for aged care in our state. It will be built in conjunction with a $17 million teaching, aged care and rehabilitation facility which will be funded by ACH and Flinders University. The redevelopment will provide more aged care beds in the southern suburbs and expanded rehabilitation services for the veteran community. As I say, this will be a centre of national excellence for treating older people.

Finally, at Noarlunga, planning is well underway for the $31 million redevelopment of the Noarlunga Health Service which will commence in the 2011-12 financial year. This redevelopment will include the expansion of inpatient bed capacity and the development of four high dependency beds to provide higher level support for surgical activity. The redevelopment will also include improved theatres and a new 16-chair renal dialysis facility, replacing an existing eight-chair facility.

Across the southern suburbs and the rest of the state, we are rebuilding hospital facilities to provide staff the best environment possible in which to treat patients. What this is about is to make sure that we have the best possible circumstances in which the patients of our state can be treated by the outstanding doctors and nurses who we have working for us. I say to the opposition, which continually tries to take political points on every one of these initiatives, tell us what you would do.