COVID-19 Hospital Response

The Hon. I. PNEVMATIKOS (15:16): My question is to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing regarding health. What is the maximum number of positive COVID-19 cases requiring hospitalisation that our public health system can handle? How many COVID patients in ICU can our health system handle before it is overwhelmed? How many COVID patients on ventilators can our health system handle before it is overwhelmed?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (15:17): I thank the honourable member for her question. As I have indicated, I think in a previous answer to the Hon. Frank Pangallo, SA Health has been doing planning right through this pandemic in terms of the readiness of both the public health system and the acute health system for COVID-19 outbreaks.

It is sobering to be mindful of the situation that our nation is in today. There are three outbreak states and territories and, as of 21 September (yesterday), between them they had 19,435 active cases. The other five jurisdictions, including South Australia, have between them 43 active cases. South Australia has seven active cases.

The situation is serious. The 19,435 that I referred to is basically one-fifth of cases Australia has had during the pandemic. Certainly, the situation is putting pressure on the hospital networks there. For example, in New South Wales, whilst they have 13,000 active cases, they have 1,268—

The Hon. I.K. Hunter interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: How many can our system handle, Steve?

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Hunter is out of order.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: Answer the question. Not Victoria or New South Wales—

The PRESIDENT: Order! The minister is answering the question.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: No, he's not.

The PRESIDENT: Order!

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The minister will continue and the Hon. Mr Hunter will remain silent.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: And in New South Wales, of those—

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: What about the South Australian health system? That was the question. Why are you avoiding answering?

The PRESIDENT: Order! I am sure the minister is addressing his answer to the question as was asked. The minister will continue.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: As I was saying, of the 1,268 current cases in hospital, 242 of those are currently in intensive care units. As I said earlier in my answer to the Hon. Frank Pangallo, SA Health has been continually looking at the experience overseas and interstate. We are certainly learning from the response that the New South Wales, the Victorian and the ACT authorities are responding to.

One thing that we have learnt through that experience is that it is not simply a matter of how many ventilators and how many ICU beds. It is very important to have the workforce to actually operate that equipment and operate those hospitals. The honourable member asked me how many South Australians in hospital are in ICU. None.