WOMEN'S AND CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL

Mrs VLAHOS (Taylor) (15:01): My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Can the minister tell the house about the recent announcement to relocate the Women's and Children's Hospital?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:01): I thank the member for Taylor for the question and, of course, her interest in this subject. South Australian families deserve access to the best possible health and hospital care, and that is why over the last 10 years the Labor government has transformed our health system. It is why we are building Australia's most advanced public hospital, the new Royal Adelaide Hospital, it is why we have modernised every major hospital in the state, and why we are investing more than ever in our health system.

The government has made health care a priority, and South Australian families now have access to world-class care, world-class facilities, and some of the shortest waiting times in the country. As members would be aware, the Women's and Children's Hospital is the leading provider of specialist care for children as well as the state's largest maternity and obstetrics service.

However, the current hospital is ageing and constrained, which will pose problems for expansion of services and research in the future. That is why I was pleased to join the Premier on Saturday to announce that we will build a brand-new, high-tech Women's and Children's Hospital, colocated with the Royal Adelaide Hospital, in the Southern Hemisphere's largest health and biomedical research precinct.

A new Women's and Children's Hospital will give women, children and babies access to the most advanced acute hospital care, meaning that new mothers will no longer face the prospect of a transfer away from their newborn. The new Women's and Children's Hospital will maintain its unique name, identity and entrance, separated from the new Royal Adelaide Hospital. Throughout the process, local clinicians in the community will lead the design and implementation of this landmark new facility, which is proposed to be opened in 2023.

After this initial period of community feedback, the government will set up a steering committee and working groups to guide the development of this new hospital. Clinicians will be critical to this ongoing process, recognising that they are well placed to advise on the types of services and facilities for the future of women's and children's hospital care in South Australia.

Further details about the budget, time frames and services will be developed with the assistance of these groups, in consultation with the community, as the proposal proceeds. I invite interested members to find out more about the project and have their say on the new facility by providing feedback through the website: www.newwch.sa.gov.au. By rebuilding our health and hospital system, we are building a healthier and stronger South Australia for generations to come.