House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-06-19 Daily Xml

Contents

Modbury Hospital

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (15:12): My question is to the Premier. Will the government be installing an intensive care unit at Modbury Hospital? The Minister for Health in the other place today has informed the council in a response, and I quote: 'I can confirm I have received advice from SA Health indicating in the absence of establishing a new intensive care unit at Modbury Hospital, appropriate levels of clinical safety may not be achieved with the establishment of a standalone high dependency unit.'

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (15:13): Modbury Hospital is incredibly important. Everybody in this house knows—

Mr Picton: Will there be an IC unit?

The SPEAKER Order!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —how important Modbury Hospital is and everybody in this house knows what a dreadful shambles the previous government's Transforming Health policy was.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my right!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: We on this side of the house, led by the Hon. Stephen Wade in the other place, are doing everything we possibly can to fix the mess left behind by that dreadful Labor government. I have not heard one opposition member since the election even utter those two words: Transforming Health.

Mr PICTON: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: Point of order. The minister will be seated for one moment.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my right will be quite for one moment while I hear the point of order.

Mr PICTON: The point of order is debate. There was a very specific question asked and the minister is debating the answer.

The SPEAKER: I will listen carefully. Minister, the question was very specific. I am sure, after warming up, you will come to the substance of the question. Thank you, minister.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Yes, Mr Speaker, of course I will. Modbury Hospital is incredibly important. We will do everything necessary to fix it up. People remember the debacle about the ambus—it was going to go, then it wasn't going to go. Ambulance and other services are connected to high dependency and critical health very closely. We continue to take advice from clinicians. We continue to receive a wide range of advice from clinicians—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —with regard to delivering our plans.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Mr Speaker, you would be very well aware, from your position, looking at all the things that go on in this chamber—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order! Allow the minister to finish his answer, please.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my right will be quiet. The member for Hammond is warned. Minister.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: One of the very important things that we need to do to correct the damage done by the former Labor government is to provide better critical care services in the northern suburbs. We will do that. That includes working with Modbury. We take advice from clinicians at all levels. We do not make our health decisions in the way that the previous government did, by doing what seemed to be politically expedient at the time.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order! Is the minister finished? Almost?

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: No.

The SPEAKER: Continue.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: We will deliver vastly improved health care for South Australians at Modbury Hospital and we will make sure that intensive care services are provided where they are needed.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Let me be very clear, the Premier—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER Order! The minister will finish his answer in silence.

Mr Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Lee is called to order. Minister.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: We will continue to consult, we will continue to take advice and we will deliver the right services in the right places so that South Australians can be very comfortable that wherever they live in the state, whether it be Modbury or whether it be Marree, they can get the care that they need for health from the Marshall Liberal government. We will continue to work with all sectors of society and we will deliver the services, the staff, the facilities and the hospitals. Most importantly, we will not be doing what the previous government did, which was terrify people with their dreadful plans.