❓ The Premier outlines the government's commitment to improving healthcare access through infrastructure projects, including hospital acquisitions, redevelopments, and upgrades across WA.
AnsweredQoN 584Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Health—Infrastructure
projects
584. Mr David Scaife to
the Premier:
I refer to the Cook
Labor government's commitment to ensuring that all Western Australians can
access the health care they need when they need it.
(1) Can the Premier update the house on how this
government is building on that commitment?
(2) Can the Premier advise how this work will
transform how Western Australians access the health care that they need?
projects
584. Mr David Scaife to
the Premier:
I refer to the Cook
Labor government's commitment to ensuring that all Western Australians can
access the health care they need when they need it.
(1) Can the Premier update the house on how this
government is building on that commitment?
(2) Can the Premier advise how this work will
transform how Western Australians access the health care that they need?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the
question. Before I answer it, Mr Speaker, with your indulgence, can I just
acknowledge that today is Remembrance Day. I draw members' attention to the
brief ministerial statement made earlier in today's proceedings by the Minister
for Veterans. I think it was a wonderful solemn reflection of the sacrifices
made on behalf of our country. I thank him for making that statement earlier
because it is a reminder of the kind of society that was fought for and what is
important, such as the wellbeing of Western Australians, the strength of our
communities, how we treat the most vulnerable in our community and the
importance of setting our state up for the long term. Our hospitals, health
system and aged-care sector are central to our aspirations as a strong, free
and prosperous place to live.
In recent days we made
some big decisions around the delivery of health care in this state because we
know that the system and hospital staff have been put to the test. We know that
with a growing and ageing population, we need more capacity, more beds and more
staff. We announced three transformational health projects that will help
Western Australians access the health care they need when they need it. We are
buying a hospital, we are building a hospital and we are upgrading a hospital.
Firstly, we are negotiating to
buy the Mount Lawley private hospital and bring it into public hands. That will
be around a hundred new public beds. It also means that eight more operating
theatres will be available to patients for surgery. I see the member for Mount
Lawley looking like the Cheshire cat; he is very happy. There is also
additional land that can be used to expand health services or aged care down
the track. Importantly, it will bring even more health care back into public
hands, and it could all happen within the space of a year.
Secondly, we will not simply
redevelop the current emergency department at Royal Perth Hospital—we
are going to build an entirely new one. This new ED will form the first stage
of the wider Royal Perth Hospital redevelopment. The ED will occupy the first
two levels of a new six-storey block at the northern end of the RPH site. It
means more capacity for patients and services. It will be a modern facility
befitting a modern city, where we can integrate the latest technology, build
more capacity and help more people to receive an even higher standard of care.
I know that the members for
Mandurah and Dawesville are particularly excited that we are going to do the
same thing in the Peel region. We will not just redevelop Peel Health Campus;
we will build an entirely new one—a six-storey hospital with more
capacity, a new ED, new cancer facilities, a new mental health centre and new palliative
care facilities. Mr Speaker, it is pretty much a new everything! The cost is
comparable to a redevelopment, but it will be built faster and to a higher
standard and there will be no disruption to patients. At the end of it, we will
still have the old hospital that we can use for services like aged care. I
remind the house that we are only in a position to make these sorts of
decisions because the WA Labor government brought Peel Health Campus back into
public hands.
We are entering a new era of
hospital construction. Yes, there is Peel and Royal Perth, but we are also
building and redeveloping health facilities across the state through our $4.7 billion
investment towards health infrastructure during this term of government. We
have a clear and tangible plan for Western Australians to get the health care they
need when they need it.
question. Before I answer it, Mr Speaker, with your indulgence, can I just
acknowledge that today is Remembrance Day. I draw members' attention to the
brief ministerial statement made earlier in today's proceedings by the Minister
for Veterans. I think it was a wonderful solemn reflection of the sacrifices
made on behalf of our country. I thank him for making that statement earlier
because it is a reminder of the kind of society that was fought for and what is
important, such as the wellbeing of Western Australians, the strength of our
communities, how we treat the most vulnerable in our community and the
importance of setting our state up for the long term. Our hospitals, health
system and aged-care sector are central to our aspirations as a strong, free
and prosperous place to live.
In recent days we made
some big decisions around the delivery of health care in this state because we
know that the system and hospital staff have been put to the test. We know that
with a growing and ageing population, we need more capacity, more beds and more
staff. We announced three transformational health projects that will help
Western Australians access the health care they need when they need it. We are
buying a hospital, we are building a hospital and we are upgrading a hospital.
Firstly, we are negotiating to
buy the Mount Lawley private hospital and bring it into public hands. That will
be around a hundred new public beds. It also means that eight more operating
theatres will be available to patients for surgery. I see the member for Mount
Lawley looking like the Cheshire cat; he is very happy. There is also
additional land that can be used to expand health services or aged care down
the track. Importantly, it will bring even more health care back into public
hands, and it could all happen within the space of a year.
Secondly, we will not simply
redevelop the current emergency department at Royal Perth Hospital—we
are going to build an entirely new one. This new ED will form the first stage
of the wider Royal Perth Hospital redevelopment. The ED will occupy the first
two levels of a new six-storey block at the northern end of the RPH site. It
means more capacity for patients and services. It will be a modern facility
befitting a modern city, where we can integrate the latest technology, build
more capacity and help more people to receive an even higher standard of care.
I know that the members for
Mandurah and Dawesville are particularly excited that we are going to do the
same thing in the Peel region. We will not just redevelop Peel Health Campus;
we will build an entirely new one—a six-storey hospital with more
capacity, a new ED, new cancer facilities, a new mental health centre and new palliative
care facilities. Mr Speaker, it is pretty much a new everything! The cost is
comparable to a redevelopment, but it will be built faster and to a higher
standard and there will be no disruption to patients. At the end of it, we will
still have the old hospital that we can use for services like aged care. I
remind the house that we are only in a position to make these sorts of
decisions because the WA Labor government brought Peel Health Campus back into
public hands.
We are entering a new era of
hospital construction. Yes, there is Peel and Royal Perth, but we are also
building and redeveloping health facilities across the state through our $4.7 billion
investment towards health infrastructure during this term of government. We
have a clear and tangible plan for Western Australians to get the health care they
need when they need it.
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