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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-05-01 Daily Xml
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SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SALARIED MEDICAL OFFICERS ASSOCIATION

Ms CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (14:26): My question is to the Minister for Health. How many elective surgery procedures have been cancelled as a result of the enterprise bargaining dispute between the minister for Health and the South Australian Salaried Medical Officers Association since the dispute began in October 2007? There have now been a number of strikes resulting in the cancellation of elective surgery. During the last strike, on 16 April, approximately 150 elective surgery procedures were cancelled.

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health, Minister for the Southern Suburbs, Minister Assisting the Premier in the Arts) (14:27): I am not entirely sure why the Deputy Leader of the Opposition has asked this question, since she substantially answered it herself in her explanation. The industrial action of a week or so ago resulted in 150 procedures in our hospitals being cancelled. That is precisely right. That was the only strike action, if you like. There have been several stop-work meetings, which has meant a number of procedures have been—

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The minister for Health has the floor.

The Hon. J.D. HILL: The Deputy Leader of the Opposition knows not what she talks about. I was saying that a number of other stop-work meetings have been held, and some elective surgical procedures have been cancelled in relation to those. As to the precise number, I think it is around 200 all up, but I am happy to get the exact number for the honourable member. Also, there were some delays. I think, from memory, that the health department or I put the figures out in the public domain, so it is no secret, but it is around the order of 200 procedures, and I will say, of course, that that has inconvenienced those people.

It particularly inconvenienced a number of children whose surgery was cancelled and I said at the time and I say it again: I think the union was wrong to get its members to cancel the procedures for children. It is a different order of business if you are doing something to an adult, but to unsettle children and their families in the way they did I think was just plain morally wrong, and I hope that whatever action they decide to take in the future does not involve interfering with the capacity of children to have surgery that they require.

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