❓ Question regarding ambulance ramping and access block, specifically concerning Royal Perth Hospital and the four-hour rule. The Minister provides data showing improvements in ambulance ramping and access block at Royal Perth and other hospitals, while also engaging in political point-scoring.
AnsweredQoN 71Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
HOSPITAL EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT WAITING TIMES — FOUR-HOUR RULE
Mr Speaker — Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES
Mr Speaker — Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES
AnswerView source ↗
The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : I ask the member to take his seat! There is a process in this place whereby when a member is given the call, the previous questions do not continue. I formally call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Rockingham. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Members! Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Can the minister advise — Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr J.N. Hyde interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Member for Perth, I appreciate your interest in the question and I understand that, as does every member of this place, but there is no need for the outburst. I formally call you to order for the first time. Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.W. SUTHERLAND : Mr Speaker, I do not think anybody heard the question, so I will repeat it. As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
As the minister knows, I am keenly interested in Royal Perth Hospital. I am constantly appalled by the opposition’s continued campaign to have it closed, despite the fact that it services thousands of people living in Perth’s inner city and eastern corridor and is integral to medical emergency treatment throughout the state. Can the minister advise the situation with ambulance ramping and the access block? Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES replied: The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The member for Mount Lawley is very keenly interested in the future of Royal Perth Hospital, and well he might be, because it was a significant issue in his electorate in the lead-up to the last election. I think it could well have assisted him greatly in winning his seat. He campaigned very strongly and hard in his electorate to ensure that Royal Perth would be retained as a tertiary hospital. As members know, we have brought into Western Australian hospitals the four-hour rule in that people need to be seen, treated and either admitted or discharged within four hours. We are the first state in Australia to do so, and I can tell members that this is being very keenly watched by other states to see how well it progresses. Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr C.J. Barnett : Hello, hello, hello! Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Ms A.J.G. MacTiernan interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : How is my footy club? Is it pretty good? Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr A.P. O’Gorman : It didn’t invite you. Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : It did invite me, in fact, but what did I say? I said no, despite being the patron of the club. I am sure the local member said exactly the same. He would have been invited and he would have said no; did you not, member for Mandurah? He would have said no and I said no because we think the responsibilities of our electorate are more important than going out campaigning — Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr R.H. Cook interjected. Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition asked the question. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The opposition raised the issue. The member should not continue to be a member of this place when she is campaigning for a federal seat. She should be representing her electorate here in Parliament; that is what should be happening. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Members! Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Mr Speaker, there have been significant improvements. We are not yet at the 85 per cent target, which is due next month. But I can tell members that in some of the critical indices there have been some improvements already. I do not have the January figures for all of the indices yet, but I can tell members some of them. There were significant improvements in emergency department attendances between October and December last year, for example, with people waiting fewer than four hours. Probably the best of those examples is at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which had a four per cent reduction. Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Ambulance ramping—one of the critical issues to plague the former government—had some significant changes in two hospitals in particular. Ambulance ramping at Royal Perth between July 2008 and January 2009 came down from 46 hours a week to just 22.5 hours a week; and at Fremantle Hospital from 51.3 hours a week down to 22.3 hours a week. That is a major reduction in ambulance ramping. I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
I will deal with access block. During the time of the former government, Western Australian hospitals had the worst record in Australia for people waiting longer than eight hours for a bed. Patients were stuck on couches in a corridor. Again, we have two hospitals with outstanding results. Royal Perth Hospital was already doing pretty well. Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has gone from 50.5 per cent for people waiting on beds in corridors for longer than eight hours down to 30.4 per cent—50.5 per cent down to 30.4 per cent. At the same time as those hospitals — Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr M.P. Whitely interjected. The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
The SPEAKER : Member for Bassendean, I know you have some contributions you would like to make, but there are other ways to do it. I might sound repetitive. I formally call you for the first time. Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : The figure for patients who are stuck in a corridor for longer than eight hours waiting for a bed has gone from 50.5 down to 30.4 per cent at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. At the same time, our hospitals have been able to do 2 500 more waitlist surgical procedures than they did the year before. Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Mr E.S. Ripper : And the waiting list has blown out. Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
Dr K.D. HAMES : Of course it has blown out, because we now have all those people who were waiting to get onto the waiting list but who got in to be seen and were put on the waiting list. The total number of patients getting onto the waiting list has gone up by about 4 500, and we have been able to do the surgical procedures for only 2 500 of those extra people who came onto the list. The other reduction is at Fremantle Hospital, which has gone from 52.6 per cent down to 42.6 per cent. There is a long way to go, but the hospitals are working exceptionally hard, and I am very proud of the job they are doing.
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