MCLAREN VALE AND DISTRICTS WAR MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

Mr BIGNELL (Mawson) (14:19): My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Can the minister update the house on the funding arrangements for the McLaren Vale hospital?

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts) (14:20): I thank the member for Mawson for his question and I acknowledge his strong advocacy work in his electorate on behalf of the McLaren Vale & Districts War Memorial Hospital. Indeed, he and I attended a meeting with the board of the hospital on Friday of last week where we discussed the issues with the hospital.

As members would know, the recent reports done into the health budget recommended some changes to the arrangements we have in place with the McLaren Vale hospital. We currently fund the McLaren Vale hospital about $1.5 million a year. That is effectively to have open 10 public beds and pay for some surgical procedures, as I understand it. The recommendation to us was that we should review whether or not we should continue to fund those functions and whether or not we could do them within our own services.

At the time the report came down I said I would ask the department to look at other options rather than de-funding and to see whether or not we could get better value for money from the hospital. The member for Mawson, I have to say, has been tireless in his efforts to make sure that the views of the McLaren Vale community, in relation to this, have been heard and he has also advised his constituents—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: He is a good member and I agree with the members on the other side who have said that. This included advising constituents of their opportunities to provide feedback through the consultation process that health was undertaking in relation to the reviews. He, of course, liaised with the McLaren Vale hospital board and met with me on a number of occasions to raise his and their concerns.

I met with the board, as I said, last week, and I was able to advise them—and I advise the house—that we would continue funding at the same level in relation to the funds that we give to the hospital but I said we would want to get better value for money from the funds that we were providing. In fact, I said we would work with the hospital and make sure that we have a greater use of the available beds.

The principal way that we would want to do this is to help transfer patients from Flinders and Noarlunga, but perhaps other beds as well in RAH and other hospitals—depending where the people live—who have finished with their acute level care but need some subacute care or rehabilitation which might be provided at the McLaren Vale hospital. I said to them that they should view their relationship with us as a customer rather than as a government funder and the relationship should really be on that kind of basis. I said if we could do this properly, there is no reason, in fact, in future, why we couldn't expand the amount of provision that is there. So this funding could, in fact, be expanded over time.

I think the board was very happy with that arrangement. It will mean some changes; they will need to gear up in a different way for the kind of patients that we would want to have transferred there so it will mean some operational changes but they seem to be very much up for that. Of course, we are very pleased to maintain that sort of arrangement.

McLaren Vale hospital will play a role in the changes to improve the efficiencies of the overall budget for the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: There is a smattering of comments, Madam Speaker. I can assure members on the other side, I can't hear a word they are saying; I can just hear that they are speaking. I would say to them, if they could rest their own voices, or, alternatively, they can ask me a question in an orderly fashion and I would be delighted to answer them.

As I was saying, McLaren Vale hospital will be part of the process of ensuring that we make budget savings in the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network by providing services to that network in a cost-effective way and I look forward to continuing to work with the hospital. Just in relation to the types of patients we would envisage—

The SPEAKER: Minister, I am sorry, your time has expired.