❓ Opposition asks about impending job losses in the health portfolio, specifically regarding the number of job cuts, the timing of informing affected staff, and the locations of the cuts. The Minister acknowledges activity levels are below funding levels and staffing is higher than comparable hospitals, necessitating budget adjustments but avoids specifying numbers.
AnsweredQoN 957Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH — STAFFING
957. Mr M. McGOWAN to the
Minister for Health:
Prior to asking my question, on behalf of the member for
Armadale, I acknowledge the media students from Cecil Andrews Senior High
School, along with their teacher, Jan Cooper, and mentor, Bob Maumill; and on
behalf of the member for Gosnells, I acknowledge the students from the
Australian Islamic College.
I refer to impending job losses throughout the health
portfolio.
(1) Is the
Australian Medical Association correct that around 2 000 jobs will be cut; and,
if that is not correct, how many jobs will be cut?
(2) When will the people affected by these job cuts be
informed?
(3) Where exactly will these cuts be made?
OF HEALTH — STAFFING
957. Mr M. McGOWAN to the
Minister for Health:
Prior to asking my question, on behalf of the member for
Armadale, I acknowledge the media students from Cecil Andrews Senior High
School, along with their teacher, Jan Cooper, and mentor, Bob Maumill; and on
behalf of the member for Gosnells, I acknowledge the students from the
Australian Islamic College.
I refer to impending job losses throughout the health
portfolio.
(1) Is the
Australian Medical Association correct that around 2 000 jobs will be cut; and,
if that is not correct, how many jobs will be cut?
(2) When will the people affected by these job cuts be
informed?
(3) Where exactly will these cuts be made?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3)
I cannot give the exact number of staff who will be affected by this. However,
I can go into the process that will occur. What is happening within our
hospitals is that we are funded for certain activity levels. We are in fact not
achieving those activity levels for which the hospitals are funded. They are
lower than the activity levels that we gave them money for, yet the cost for
the activity levels that they are providing is far higher than not only the
national efficient price, but also the state price. That includes acceptance of
the fact that our staff in Western Australia are paid much more than staff in
other states—for doctors in Victoria and New South Wales, I think it is
about 20 per cent more, and for nurses, 10 to 15 per cent more. The staffing level
in our hospitals for the amount of work that they are getting is far higher
than in other hospitals that we can compare them with. If we look at Sir
Charles Gairdner Hospital, which has already had reductions in staff levels,
and compare that with any other hospital in Australia by taking as an example a
patient with exactly the same condition in exactly the same bed, and ask how
many staff we need to look after that patient, we can see that we have more
staff in our hospitals than is the case in any other state in Australia. We
have told the staff and the hospitals, and each division within the hospitals,
that they have to make changes to meet their budget. That is not every
division. Some divisions in fact need more staff and some do not need to change
the number of full-time equivalents. Instead of, for example, moving out 10
people, they could change rostering or the use of overtime or agency nurses.
There is a whole range of things they can do within an individual area to
protect the staff numbers that they have. But they have to do that; they have
to meet their budget. Contrary to what the opposition said outside this place
earlier today, this does not need to be done by Christmas. We will do this over
the months to come by working with each area within the hospitals. They know
what their budget is. In some areas, because of the transfer to Fiona Stanley
Hospital, hospitals such as Royal Perth have been left with more staff than
they need. That is not the case in every area. Some areas are much worse than
others. There is no reason why we need five staff for one patient here, for
example, and they need only three staff for the same patient in other hospitals
in the country to provide a safe service to that patient. We are about
providing safe service and we will make sure that continues to be provided.
However, we do not need to have the current number of staff, or the current
overtime, or the current on-call rates, or the current agency employment, to
provide the service that we provide.
I cannot give the exact number of staff who will be affected by this. However,
I can go into the process that will occur. What is happening within our
hospitals is that we are funded for certain activity levels. We are in fact not
achieving those activity levels for which the hospitals are funded. They are
lower than the activity levels that we gave them money for, yet the cost for
the activity levels that they are providing is far higher than not only the
national efficient price, but also the state price. That includes acceptance of
the fact that our staff in Western Australia are paid much more than staff in
other states—for doctors in Victoria and New South Wales, I think it is
about 20 per cent more, and for nurses, 10 to 15 per cent more. The staffing level
in our hospitals for the amount of work that they are getting is far higher
than in other hospitals that we can compare them with. If we look at Sir
Charles Gairdner Hospital, which has already had reductions in staff levels,
and compare that with any other hospital in Australia by taking as an example a
patient with exactly the same condition in exactly the same bed, and ask how
many staff we need to look after that patient, we can see that we have more
staff in our hospitals than is the case in any other state in Australia. We
have told the staff and the hospitals, and each division within the hospitals,
that they have to make changes to meet their budget. That is not every
division. Some divisions in fact need more staff and some do not need to change
the number of full-time equivalents. Instead of, for example, moving out 10
people, they could change rostering or the use of overtime or agency nurses.
There is a whole range of things they can do within an individual area to
protect the staff numbers that they have. But they have to do that; they have
to meet their budget. Contrary to what the opposition said outside this place
earlier today, this does not need to be done by Christmas. We will do this over
the months to come by working with each area within the hospitals. They know
what their budget is. In some areas, because of the transfer to Fiona Stanley
Hospital, hospitals such as Royal Perth have been left with more staff than
they need. That is not the case in every area. Some areas are much worse than
others. There is no reason why we need five staff for one patient here, for
example, and they need only three staff for the same patient in other hospitals
in the country to provide a safe service to that patient. We are about
providing safe service and we will make sure that continues to be provided.
However, we do not need to have the current number of staff, or the current
overtime, or the current on-call rates, or the current agency employment, to
provide the service that we provide.
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