COVID-19

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (14:47): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Health and Wellbeing regarding COVID.

Leave granted.

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS: Minister, we have seen in the COVID-19 pandemic the difference that an innovative approach to health services can make, particularly in the efforts of SA Pathology to support our response to the pandemic. Will the minister update the council on innovative approaches to health outside the pandemic response?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:48): I thank the honourable member for his question. He is certainly right to highlight the skill of our statewide clinical services. He particularly mentioned SA Pathology. If I may, in response to his question, I would like to highlight another agency within our statewide clinical services cluster and that is SA Pharmacy.

The Marshall Liberal government has strongly supported innovative approaches to health care and in the course of our response to the COVID pandemic this has included support for drive-through testing clinics with SA Pathology and the work that has been done by SA Pathology to provide streamlined responses to South Australians in response to a test.

At the same time, we have continued to support innovation in our hospitals and health services. One example of this is the recent investment in a pharmacy robot at the Lyell McEwin Hospital. The new pharmacy robot is only the second in our public hospitals, with the first being at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. The robot improves the way that medication is stored and provides to clinicians, meaning more efficient use of space and less scope for medication error.

The newly installed robot and its workspace can store up to 36,000 packages. One thing that I found quite amazing was the way that it uses artificial intelligence. AI means that these 36,000 packages are not stored as I might expect them to be, in designated rows or in groups of identical medication, but instead to maximise the space within the unit. Like a Tetris game, the machine uses AI to remember exactly where each box of medication is stored, such that there may be numerous places within the 36,000-package capacity where the same medication may be stored, but it, with great precision, delivers what is needed when it's needed.

As well as storing and retrieving the medicine, it also unpacks and prepares them, providing end-to-end support for pharmacists and clinicians at the Lyell McEwin Hospital. The robot can also work through the night, meaning that staff beginning work in the morning will have allocations already prepared, saving time for staff and reducing any wait for patients who need their medication.

In the environment of a busy hospital pharmacy, more time means that staff can then spend more time with patients, educating and supporting them regarding their medicines. This $1.6 million investment is just one example of the Marshall Liberal government investing to support the provision of better health services closer to home in Adelaide's north.

Considering that the Premier referenced today the quest to find a name for, I think it was a satellite or rocket, or something that goes into the air, I am sure the house will be interested to know that the Lyell McEwin Hospital team has landed on a name for the pair of robots. They are called Kath and Kim. I am not quite sure of the link between Kath and Kim and pharmaceutical skills, but for others who want to keep track of popular culture in the health service, you will be pleased to know that Kath and Kim live in the same pharmacy, together with Elsa. Of course, Elsa is a Pfizer fridge and, of course, Elsa was the star of Frozen.

I wish the Lyell McEwin pharmacy team all the best, not only for their ongoing services for the people of the north in terms of pharmaceutical services, but in particular for their role in the vaccine rollout through Elsa and her partners.