HEALTH DEPARTMENT

206 Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (15 March 2011) (First Session). How many mobile telephones, credit cards and parking spaces, respectively, are paid for by the Department of Health?

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts): I am advised:

At March 2011, the Department of Health paid for 10,042 mobile telephones, 101 credit cards and 83 parking spaces.

The Health workforce is highly mobile with most clinical staff not having a desk. Due to the 24-hour nature of service provision, a large number of staff are on call in support of our health system. On call staff are predominantly in clinical roles, but also include managerial, executive and infrastructure support such as biomedical engineering and ICT. In addition, Country Health SA has a significant number of staff that travel between population centres and for whom carriage of a mobile phone is required to ensure their occupational safety and welfare during travel.