Vulnerable South Australians

The Hon. H.M. GIROLAMO (14:45): My question is to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing. Will the minister please update the council on what the government is doing to protect vulnerable South Australians?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:45): I thank the honourable member for her question. In the run-up to the last state election, the Marshall Liberal team gave a firm undertaking to the people of South Australia that, if elected, a Marshall Liberal government would move quickly and decisively to strengthen and safeguard the rights of vulnerable South Australians. That commitment was made in the wake of Oakden and the previous government's failure to protect a group of extremely vulnerable South Australians from abuse.

The South Australians the previous government left abandoned and unprotected in Oakden were, in the findings of the then Independent Commissioner Against Corruption, 'some of the most frail and vulnerable persons in our community', who 'did not have a voice' and who were 'obliged to live in a facility which could only be described as a disgrace and in which they received very poor care'.

The commissioner could not have been more clear in his words. In the dying days of the previous government he wrote:

Every South Australian should be outraged at the way in which these consumers were treated. It represents a shameful chapter in this State’s history.

It should not have happened.

It must never happen again.

The Marshall Liberal government's determination to ensure Oakden never happens again and to combat elder abuse and safeguard vulnerable South Australians has seen this government deliver a number of important initiatives over the last 3½ years. These initiatives include spending $18 million on the establishment of a neurobehavioural ward and a Specialist Advanced Dementia Unit on the reactivated Repat site in Daw Park so that the cohort of vulnerable Australians who the previous government had placed at Oakden will receive quality care in world-class facilities.

Another very important initiative of the Marshall Liberal government was the establishment of an Adult Safeguarding Unit within the Office for Ageing Well to ensure allegations of abuse against vulnerable South Australians are promptly and effectively investigated. I was honoured, within the first 100 days of the Marshall Liberal government, to introduce to this council nation-first legislation that led to the establishment of the Adult Safeguarding Unit.

This month marks the second anniversary of the establishment of the unit, which has been serving and supporting the people of South Australia since October 2019. For the first 12 months, the unit's work focused on responding to vulnerable South Australians aged 65 or older and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders aged 50 years or older. In that year, the unit took 1,069 calls, 490 of which were reports that required the unit to take action.

At the start of its second year, the unit's focus expanded to include all adults living with a disability. The timing of the expansion was brought forward as part of the government's response to the circumstances and tragic death of Ann Marie Smith. As expected, the expansion of the unit's authority led to a significant increase in the number of calls. I am advised that the unit received almost twice as many calls and contacts in its second year—2,115 compared with 1,069 in its first year. Next year, the unit's remit will expand again. From 1 October 2022, its legal authority will extend to all adults vulnerable to abuse: everyone aged 18 years and over.

In closing, I want to acknowledge both the work and dedication of the Adult Safeguarding Unit staff and the actions of the growing number of South Australians who are making contact with the unit as, together, as a community, South Australians strive to protect the vulnerable members of our community and stop elder abuse whenever and wherever it is occurring.