Health Review

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:35): I have a supplementary question. Is the minister suggesting to the house that the data upon which he has relied (it has yet to be determined whether it has been publicly released or not) shows that the morbidity and mortality rates at the Noarlunga emergency department are higher than the Flinders Medical Centre?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (14:36): I think the Leader of the Opposition is somewhat confusing the issues. I am not saying that the Noarlunga emergency department is a dangerous emergency department. I have never suggested that; I have never suggested that people should not go there. It is a very safe emergency department and does wonderful work.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: Mr Speaker, I am happy to give an answer but I can't do it over the cackle of those opposite. I am more than happy to treat this as a serious question and give it a serious answer but it is somewhat difficult when the opposition is cackling. I have never ever suggested that care has ever in any way been compromised at the Noarlunga emergency department. It does an excellent job. However, we need to be realistic about what that emergency department can do and the sorts of presentations it can deal with.

This is not an issue of controversy among the people who work at Noarlunga. They are quite up-front about the fact that there are only certain presentations that they can deal with and the more serious presentations, the life-threatening type presentations that are likely to require an admission into hospital, are transferred up to the Flinders Medical Centre where their definitive treatment is to be started that will get that person better.

It is so important that, as much as possible, people don't go to the Noarlunga emergency department if they are having a presentation of that nature and that they go straight to the Flinders Medical Centre. If they go to the Noarlunga ED there will be a delay to their definitive treatment being started and, inevitably, their care won't be of the same quality as if they had gone straight to the Flinders Medical Centre. However, for the vast majority of people—no need to say it 100 times—for the almost nine out of 10 patients currently going to the Noarlunga ED they don't require admission to hospital. They are able to be seen, treated and discharged and that's the strength of the Noarlunga emergency department and it is a strength I want to build upon.