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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-04-07 Daily Xml
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Repatriation General Hospital

Mr DULUK (Waite) (15:05): Thank you, Mr Speaker. My question is to the Premier. How is the government's decision to tear up the former contract to sell the Repat and reactivate the site benefiting South Australians during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Premier, please be seated for one moment. Members on my left, please. I do not want to be naming members today.

An honourable member interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my right, be quiet. The Premier has the call, and then I will come back to those on my left.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (15:05): Thank you very much, sir, and I thank the member for Waite for his question.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: The previous government decommissioned the former Repatriation General Hospital. That was closed in I think September or, at the very latest, December 2017, and they had entered into an agreement to sell that land. On coming into government in March 2018, we made it very clear that we had no interest whatsoever in selling that precinct; in fact, our plan was to actually turn it into a genuine health precinct.

We particularly wanted to serve the people of the southern suburbs. We already well understand the problems that the decision of the former government has had on the southern health system, with very significant under-resourcing, especially in the emergency department down at the Flinders Medical Centre, the busiest emergency department in the state. Of course, that has an overflow effect onto the Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia. It was a very significantly bad error of judgement by the previous government to close that site.

What we have done since coming to government is work through a master plan on how we can reactivate the Repat site as a genuine health precinct. I would like to provide information to the house about how it has specifically been useful for the COVID-19 virus.

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Playford!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: I understand there were six wards on the Repat site that were scheduled to be demolished, but because we own that site, and because it has very good bones, we were able to very quickly reactivate the site. Yes, it cost the state government money to reactivate four of those wards, giving us another 90-bed capacity on that site, but it is an insurance policy.

I made it clear to the people of South Australia that I hope we never need to use the reactivated wards down there. I hope that we never, ever have to go anywhere near the Repat with COVID-19 patients, but the reality is that we've got to be as prepared as we possibly can be. The decision by this government to keep the Repat hospital site has given us that opportunity.

Of course there are plenty of other things going on down at that site, in particular setting up the precinct as a national centre for dementia care and for dealing with tier 6 and tier 7 patients living with mental health illnesses. We all know the great shame that was brought on our state by the previous government's mismanagement of the Oakden facility. That was absolutely a dark, dark day and chapter in our state's history. What we are doing, by working with people from that sector, is trying to rebuild the structure of the mental health system and the dementia care system in South Australia that will be the envy of all other states.

We are on our time frame to do exactly and precisely that, and we are looking forward to the day when that entire site can be reopened, reactivated and continue to serve the people of South Australia for decades and decades to come.

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