Palliative Care

Mr DULUK (Davenport) (15:01): My question is to the Minister for Health. Can the minister explain why the new palliative care unit at the Flinders Medical Centre includes only 15 beds, the same number as the service being closed at the Repat? The government's own Palliative Care Services Plan for 2009-16 stated that hospice facilities at the Repat would need to expand to a 22-bed unit to meet hospice care needs in the southern suburbs.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (15:02): It is because—

Mr Williams interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for MacKillop is called to order.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: —thinking with regard to palliative care has shifted in recent years towards less hospital-based care, people not dying in hospital but giving people, as far as possible, the opportunity and support to die at home or, if they are in an aged-care facility, to die in their aged-care facility. So, the shifting of resources has been out of hospital-based palliative care.

Of course, for some people that will always be the only option. There will be some people for whom dying at home or dying in an aged-care facility is just not possible, in which case you do need to have hospital-based facilities. However, if the member for Davenport wants to talk to or be briefed by some palliative care experts, I would be more than happy to facilitate that. I think he would then be reassured that the direction of palliative care is towards putting more resources into the community and providing more opportunities for people to die at home rather than the default being to die in a hospital bed.