❓ A parliamentary question regarding ultrasound services at Kalgoorlie Hospital reveals wait times, staffing arrangements, and recruitment plans. The response indicates no current plans to recruit permanent staff, relying instead on contractors.
AnsweredQoN 4998Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
(1) Is it true that some public patients in Kalgoorlie are being advised they have to wait between two and three months for a routine ultrasound? (2) Are the ultrasound operators at Kalgoorlie permanent staff based in Kalgoorlie, or are they employed on a fly-in, fly-out basis? (3) What is the average turn-around time for interpreting results for ultrasound scans of public patients in Kalgoorlie? (4) Are there any vacancies for ultrasound technicians and radiologists in Kalgoorlie, if so, how many FTEs? (5) What is the Department of Health doing to recruit more permanent FTE staff to these roles in Kalgoorlie?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
15 March 2016
Responded by
Minister for Health
Response time
28 days
As at 16 February 2016:
(1) No. All ultrasound referrals are prioritised for urgency and more urgent cases are seen as a priority. An emergency ultrasound referral would be attended to the same day; a semi-urgent ultrasound referral would be seen within one week. The average waiting time for routine ultrasounds in Kalgoorlie Hospital is currently approximately six weeks.
(2) The ultrasound operators (Sonographers) are not permanent staff based in Kalgoorlie. They are contractors and all but one fly-in and fly-out as per their schedule. One Sonographer currently resides in Kalgoorlie and works on a contractual basis.
(3) Based on the past three months, the average turn-around time for interpreting results for ultrasound scans of public patients in Kalgoorlie is as follows:
(4) No.
(5) Kalgoorlie Hospital currently has no plans to recruit radiologists or sonographers directly and will continue with contract services.
(1) No. All ultrasound referrals are prioritised for urgency and more urgent cases are seen as a priority. An emergency ultrasound referral would be attended to the same day; a semi-urgent ultrasound referral would be seen within one week. The average waiting time for routine ultrasounds in Kalgoorlie Hospital is currently approximately six weeks.
(2) The ultrasound operators (Sonographers) are not permanent staff based in Kalgoorlie. They are contractors and all but one fly-in and fly-out as per their schedule. One Sonographer currently resides in Kalgoorlie and works on a contractual basis.
(3) Based on the past three months, the average turn-around time for interpreting results for ultrasound scans of public patients in Kalgoorlie is as follows:
(4) No.
(5) Kalgoorlie Hospital currently has no plans to recruit radiologists or sonographers directly and will continue with contract services.
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