❓ Mr. Cook questions the Minister for Health about record ambulance ramping and poor performance of WA emergency departments as highlighted in a recent report. The Minister acknowledges the report but downplays its significance and cites improvements in recent weeks.
AnsweredQoN 824Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
AMBULANCE RAMPING — EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS
824. Mr R.H. COOK to the Minister for
Health:
I refer to the record ambulance
ramping under the minister's management, including three successive
months of ramping for in excess of 2 000 hours. Why has the Australasian
College for Emergency Medicine's recent snapshot report on Australian
emergency departments found that Western Australian EDs perform the worst of
any state and why did this report find that 47 per cent of WA patients spent
more than four hours in EDs and that 12 patients spent more than 24 hours in
EDs waiting for a bed?
824. Mr R.H. COOK to the Minister for
Health:
I refer to the record ambulance
ramping under the minister's management, including three successive
months of ramping for in excess of 2 000 hours. Why has the Australasian
College for Emergency Medicine's recent snapshot report on Australian
emergency departments found that Western Australian EDs perform the worst of
any state and why did this report find that 47 per cent of WA patients spent
more than four hours in EDs and that 12 patients spent more than 24 hours in
EDs waiting for a bed?
AnswerView source ↗
I am aware of a report or statement
that was put out by the college that the member referred to. I think it was
about two months ago —
Mr
R.H. Cook : No.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : When was it then?
Mr
R.H. Cook : It was September.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : It was at least a month ago.
The
SPEAKER : Thank you; let us move on.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : My recollection also is that there was not a lot of support for
the comments that were made in that particular report, including from the
Australian Medical Association.
Mr
R.H. Cook interjected.
The
SPEAKER : That is enough!
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : As I said, there was not a lot of support for what was put out.
It was not a report that was a comprehensive reflection of the overall
situation. As I said, there was not a lot of support for it.
Last week we discussed the issues in
relation to the demands on our emergency departments, including the difficulty
in moving patients from emergency departments to wards because of the large
number of aged care–type patients who are occupying beds, the need for
actions to be taken by hospitals when they can do more to discharge patients or
move them to other appropriate areas of treatment, and also the demands that
exist in our emergency departments. In the last week in fact, there has been, I
think, a 58 per cent reduction in the amount of ramping at emergency
departments. There were pressures there, particularly over the winter period.
That has been explained.
Mr
R.H. Cook interjected.
The SPEAKER : That is enough!
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : There was pressure from a large number of flu cases and the
system is very much moving in the right direction. In relation to the report
that the member mentioned, as I said, my recollection is that it was not widely
supported. It came out some time ago and does not represent a comprehensive
picture of the reality.
that was put out by the college that the member referred to. I think it was
about two months ago —
Mr
R.H. Cook : No.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : When was it then?
Mr
R.H. Cook : It was September.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : It was at least a month ago.
The
SPEAKER : Thank you; let us move on.
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : My recollection also is that there was not a lot of support for
the comments that were made in that particular report, including from the
Australian Medical Association.
Mr
R.H. Cook interjected.
The
SPEAKER : That is enough!
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : As I said, there was not a lot of support for what was put out.
It was not a report that was a comprehensive reflection of the overall
situation. As I said, there was not a lot of support for it.
Last week we discussed the issues in
relation to the demands on our emergency departments, including the difficulty
in moving patients from emergency departments to wards because of the large
number of aged care–type patients who are occupying beds, the need for
actions to be taken by hospitals when they can do more to discharge patients or
move them to other appropriate areas of treatment, and also the demands that
exist in our emergency departments. In the last week in fact, there has been, I
think, a 58 per cent reduction in the amount of ramping at emergency
departments. There were pressures there, particularly over the winter period.
That has been explained.
Mr
R.H. Cook interjected.
The SPEAKER : That is enough!
Mr
J.H.D. DAY : There was pressure from a large number of flu cases and the
system is very much moving in the right direction. In relation to the report
that the member mentioned, as I said, my recollection is that it was not widely
supported. It came out some time ago and does not represent a comprehensive
picture of the reality.
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