❓ Question regarding progress of the Closing the Gap program in WA, with the Minister responding with statistics on mortality rates, education, employment, and homeownership, while acknowledging challenges in suicide and incarceration rates.
AnsweredQoN 174Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
NATIONAL CLOSING THE GAP DAY
174. Ms E. EVANGEL to the
Minister for Health:
Before I ask my question, I
acknowledge the East Perth Red Hatters group.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member
for Albany, I call you to order for the second time. The member for Perth is
welcoming the Red Hatters group.
Ms E. EVANGEL :
They are from East Perth. Might I comment that they look lovely with their red
hats today.
The SPEAKER : I
agree—resplendent!
Ms E. EVANGEL :
Thank you.
The SPEAKER : Your
question, please.
Ms E. EVANGEL :
Today is national Closing the Gap Day. Western Australia has been delivering
the Closing the Gap program in the Aboriginal health program for the past five
years. What positive achievements or progress can the Liberal–National
government demonstrate from the state's investment?
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Remove all the medical services outside the city.
174. Ms E. EVANGEL to the
Minister for Health:
Before I ask my question, I
acknowledge the East Perth Red Hatters group.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member
for Albany, I call you to order for the second time. The member for Perth is
welcoming the Red Hatters group.
Ms E. EVANGEL :
They are from East Perth. Might I comment that they look lovely with their red
hats today.
The SPEAKER : I
agree—resplendent!
Ms E. EVANGEL :
Thank you.
The SPEAKER : Your
question, please.
Ms E. EVANGEL :
Today is national Closing the Gap Day. Western Australia has been delivering
the Closing the Gap program in the Aboriginal health program for the past five
years. What positive achievements or progress can the Liberal–National
government demonstrate from the state's investment?
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Remove all the medical services outside the city.
AnswerView source ↗
Move what?
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Aboriginal medical services outside of the city.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Why
would we do that?
Mr B.S. Wyatt : I
saw a petition tabled by the member —
The
SPEAKER : Just hold on for a minute. There seems to be some confusion here.
The question was asked by the member for Perth. Minister, can you please get on
with answering that question.
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Today is national Closing the Gap Day; it is a very important
day with events being held to recognise that across Australia. I noticed the
Prime Minister, Mr Abbott, made some comments recently about the progress
towards closing the gap. I want to read out some figures to show that we are
progressing relatively well in Western Australia. Unfortunately, the figures
are not in the format we would normally get in terms of percentages, but the
figures are reflected in the mortality rate per 100 000 persons. Back in 2006,
the gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal persons was 958 per 100 000. That
has reduced since then—namely, in 2010, over a four-year period—to
767, which is about a 20 per cent reduction in the gap between Aboriginal and
non-Aboriginal mortality rates. Referring to child Aboriginal mortality rates—so
this is the nought-to-four age group—we see that the gap was 120, but
it is now 109, which is about a 10 per cent reduction. There has been improvement
in other areas, particularly also in tobacco smoking reduction.
Outside the area of health, there
are fair degrees of improvement as well. Things such as reading and numeracy
have improved; early childhood education particularly has improved, with an 80
improvement; full-time employment has improved by 70 per cent; and
homeownership has improved. Sadly, the two areas that have not improved are,
firstly, the suicide rate, which, very sadly, has got worse—and
therefore, obviously, the improvement in mortality, despite the increasing
suicide rate—and, secondly, incarceration rates of Aboriginal people
have not improved. There has been a lot of work being done. We are certainly
doing a lot of work in health to try to close that mortality gap. As part of
that process, the member for Victoria Park referred to a petition read in by
the member for Perth. Remember, those were not her words; they were words that
were given to her. But, coincidentally, an opposition member raised the same
issue with me in a private meeting, and I will not name that member.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : Was that to remove Aboriginal medical services out of the city?
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Those were the words of the people who wrote the petition, not
the member.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Members! Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the third time. Member
for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the second time.
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
understand what the member for Victoria Park is saying, but it raises a very
important issue. Where are those concerns coming from about those people in the
city who are causing disruption? They are mostly patients who are here for
health reasons, and families of those patients, and largely for the issue of
renal dialysis. There are the lot staying out in Maylands —
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : A
large percentage of them are. Just looking through those figures —
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Dr K.D. HAMES : If
the member just listens for a second, looking through those figures, we see a
significant number of those people are from the Kimberley. There are about 58
patients currently in Perth. If we are to ever close the gap, we must address
such issues. The state government has put a lot of money towards improving
dialysis in the city. When we first came to government, particularly, we put a
lot of extra services in Fitzroy Crossing, Kununurra, Derby and Broome, but
that is still not enough. Another $45 million has been allocated by the
commonwealth government for 68 hostel beds across those regions—20 in
Broome, 20 in Derby, eight in Kununurra and 20 in Fitzroy. They will be in
construction by about the middle of next year. That is very important. Those
people need to be in their home country having dialysis, not spending their
lives stuck here in Perth, doing what traditionally Aboriginal people do. They
need to be back in their home country having their treatment. For the member of
the opposition side who discussed the matter with me, as well as the member
from the government side, we in health will work very hard —
The SPEAKER : The
member for Victoria Park, I am calling you to order for the third time.
Dr K.D. HAMES : We
are working very hard to help to get those people back to their own country so
they can have the medical treatment they need. In doing that, we should work
further to closing the gap in health, because that is where they will get not
only the best treatment, but also the best outcomes.
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Aboriginal medical services outside of the city.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Why
would we do that?
Mr B.S. Wyatt : I
saw a petition tabled by the member —
The
SPEAKER : Just hold on for a minute. There seems to be some confusion here.
The question was asked by the member for Perth. Minister, can you please get on
with answering that question.
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Today is national Closing the Gap Day; it is a very important
day with events being held to recognise that across Australia. I noticed the
Prime Minister, Mr Abbott, made some comments recently about the progress
towards closing the gap. I want to read out some figures to show that we are
progressing relatively well in Western Australia. Unfortunately, the figures
are not in the format we would normally get in terms of percentages, but the
figures are reflected in the mortality rate per 100 000 persons. Back in 2006,
the gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal persons was 958 per 100 000. That
has reduced since then—namely, in 2010, over a four-year period—to
767, which is about a 20 per cent reduction in the gap between Aboriginal and
non-Aboriginal mortality rates. Referring to child Aboriginal mortality rates—so
this is the nought-to-four age group—we see that the gap was 120, but
it is now 109, which is about a 10 per cent reduction. There has been improvement
in other areas, particularly also in tobacco smoking reduction.
Outside the area of health, there
are fair degrees of improvement as well. Things such as reading and numeracy
have improved; early childhood education particularly has improved, with an 80
improvement; full-time employment has improved by 70 per cent; and
homeownership has improved. Sadly, the two areas that have not improved are,
firstly, the suicide rate, which, very sadly, has got worse—and
therefore, obviously, the improvement in mortality, despite the increasing
suicide rate—and, secondly, incarceration rates of Aboriginal people
have not improved. There has been a lot of work being done. We are certainly
doing a lot of work in health to try to close that mortality gap. As part of
that process, the member for Victoria Park referred to a petition read in by
the member for Perth. Remember, those were not her words; they were words that
were given to her. But, coincidentally, an opposition member raised the same
issue with me in a private meeting, and I will not name that member.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : Was that to remove Aboriginal medical services out of the city?
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Those were the words of the people who wrote the petition, not
the member.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Members! Member for Girrawheen, I call you to order for the third time. Member
for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the second time.
Dr K.D. HAMES : I
understand what the member for Victoria Park is saying, but it raises a very
important issue. Where are those concerns coming from about those people in the
city who are causing disruption? They are mostly patients who are here for
health reasons, and families of those patients, and largely for the issue of
renal dialysis. There are the lot staying out in Maylands —
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES : A
large percentage of them are. Just looking through those figures —
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park!
Dr K.D. HAMES : If
the member just listens for a second, looking through those figures, we see a
significant number of those people are from the Kimberley. There are about 58
patients currently in Perth. If we are to ever close the gap, we must address
such issues. The state government has put a lot of money towards improving
dialysis in the city. When we first came to government, particularly, we put a
lot of extra services in Fitzroy Crossing, Kununurra, Derby and Broome, but
that is still not enough. Another $45 million has been allocated by the
commonwealth government for 68 hostel beds across those regions—20 in
Broome, 20 in Derby, eight in Kununurra and 20 in Fitzroy. They will be in
construction by about the middle of next year. That is very important. Those
people need to be in their home country having dialysis, not spending their
lives stuck here in Perth, doing what traditionally Aboriginal people do. They
need to be back in their home country having their treatment. For the member of
the opposition side who discussed the matter with me, as well as the member
from the government side, we in health will work very hard —
The SPEAKER : The
member for Victoria Park, I am calling you to order for the third time.
Dr K.D. HAMES : We
are working very hard to help to get those people back to their own country so
they can have the medical treatment they need. In doing that, we should work
further to closing the gap in health, because that is where they will get not
only the best treatment, but also the best outcomes.
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