❓ Hon Phil Twiss questions the Minister for Health Infrastructure regarding water supply testing at WA hospitals, specifically concerning Legionella levels at Royal Perth Hospital and a radioactive leak at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. The response provides limited information, deferring some questions to the Minister for Health.
AnsweredQoN 761Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
Hospitals—Water supply testing
761. Hon Phil Twiss to
the parliamentary secretary representing the
Minister for Health Infrastructure:
I refer to the
testing of the water supply at Western Australian hospitals.
(1) Given this week's revelations of Legionella pneumophila levels at Royal Perth
Hospital's intensive care unit in 2022 that an expert microbiologist labelled
as pretty high and a cause for concern, why was the government concealing those
results from the WA public?
(2) Given the incomplete maintenance report tabled
in this place of the rapid radioactive leak at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in
March 2023, will the minister urgently release the full maintenance report work
order 23-21335-000, including page two of the document and the physicist's
report relating to that incident, to provide proper and necessary transparency
to the WA public and, if not, why not?
(3) Is the minister aware that a possible
hospital-acquired case of legionnaire's disease, which may have been acquired
at RPH, was notified to the Department of Health in December 2021 and, if yes,
can the minister provide any relevant documents relating to this incident?
The President: That's a pretty long question.
761. Hon Phil Twiss to
the parliamentary secretary representing the
Minister for Health Infrastructure:
I refer to the
testing of the water supply at Western Australian hospitals.
(1) Given this week's revelations of Legionella pneumophila levels at Royal Perth
Hospital's intensive care unit in 2022 that an expert microbiologist labelled
as pretty high and a cause for concern, why was the government concealing those
results from the WA public?
(2) Given the incomplete maintenance report tabled
in this place of the rapid radioactive leak at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in
March 2023, will the minister urgently release the full maintenance report work
order 23-21335-000, including page two of the document and the physicist's
report relating to that incident, to provide proper and necessary transparency
to the WA public and, if not, why not?
(3) Is the minister aware that a possible
hospital-acquired case of legionnaire's disease, which may have been acquired
at RPH, was notified to the Department of Health in December 2021 and, if yes,
can the minister provide any relevant documents relating to this incident?
The President: That's a pretty long question.
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the
honourable member for some notice of the question. The following has been
provided to me by the Minister for Health Infrastructure.
(1) Consistent with the Minister for Health's
advice to the Legislative Assembly on 9 September, she has requested the
Director General of the Department of Health to implement the requirement for
health service providers to regularly report the results of their water-testing
regimes to the department. As part of this process, the Minister for Health has
sought that the Chief Health Officer be notified when an exceedence of the Australian
Drinking Water Guidelines is detected. The Chief Health Officer will report any
exceedences that pose a risk to patients, staff or visitors to the Minister for
Health.
(2) Refer to the response provided to Legislative
Council question without notice 732.
(3) This question
should be directed to the Minister for Health.
honourable member for some notice of the question. The following has been
provided to me by the Minister for Health Infrastructure.
(1) Consistent with the Minister for Health's
advice to the Legislative Assembly on 9 September, she has requested the
Director General of the Department of Health to implement the requirement for
health service providers to regularly report the results of their water-testing
regimes to the department. As part of this process, the Minister for Health has
sought that the Chief Health Officer be notified when an exceedence of the Australian
Drinking Water Guidelines is detected. The Chief Health Officer will report any
exceedences that pose a risk to patients, staff or visitors to the Minister for
Health.
(2) Refer to the response provided to Legislative
Council question without notice 732.
(3) This question
should be directed to the Minister for Health.
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