Caesarean Section Standards

Mr WILLIAMS (MacKillop) (15:00): My question is again to the Minister for Health. Does the minister condone Country Health SA's noncompliance with the directive, 'Standards for Category 1 Caesarean Section in South Australia', particularly at Naracoorte Hospital, given that the directive states that 'compliance is mandatory' and also states that it applies to Country Health SA sites?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (15:00): I don't think the member for MacKillop actually listened to anything I said in my answer because I had a pretty good idea that this is where he was going. I certainly do not accept any suggestion that what the Country Health have put to the Naracoorte doctors in any way breach any standards or any requirement that SA Health has.

What we have put is something that has been accepted by, basically, every other GP practice working in regional South Australia. The Naracoorte doctors are the last to hold out, and the simple fact is that they are being paid more for what they were providing—significantly more up until now—than other GP practices for what they were providing. I don't think that that is fair. Of course, they are going to be, perhaps, financially a lot less well off under the proposal that's being put, but I don't think it's fair that doctors at one location should be getting paid significantly more than doctors who are working in a similar environment in another location. And that's effectively what this dispute is about.

I certainly reject any suggestion that we would be asking the Naracoorte doctors to do anything that was either unsafe or did not comply with either what the accepted guidelines and protocols are with regard to maternity care or guidelines and protocols that are issued by SA Health.