❓ The Minister for Health explains how the new Joondalup Private Hospital benefits the public health system by freeing up beds for public use and contributing to improved emergency access targets, particularly the four-hour rule.
AnsweredQoN 394Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
JOONDALUP PRIVATE HOSPITAL
394. Mr J. NORBERGER to the Minister for Health:
I understand that the minister recently attended the official
opening of the new Joondalup Private Hospital. Can he explain how the public
health system has benefited from this new building?
394. Mr J. NORBERGER to the Minister for Health:
I understand that the minister recently attended the official
opening of the new Joondalup Private Hospital. Can he explain how the public
health system has benefited from this new building?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question. It has been a fantastic
result. The development of the Joondalup hospital that started under this
government has proved to be an enormous success. The recent development that
occurred in Joondalup has allowed Ramsay Health Care to build a brand-new
private wing, which as a result has freed up beds that have been available for
the government to use for public purposes. We are now funding 26 beds that were
created under that system. They have been totally refurbished. They were part
of the old hospital. Those beds are ready to open to take off some of the
pressure within our hospitals.
Members, particularly local members, would be pleased to know
that we are looking at the four-hour rule. Joondalup has been struggling with
its four-hour rule results because of the massive pressure that it has been
under since we opened the new emergency department out there. It had a growth
in presentations of approximately 18 per cent when the doors opened. It has now
settled down to 10 per cent or 11 per cent but it is still enormous growth and
it is under enormous pressure. It has the busiest emergency department of all
our hospitals in Western Australia, something like 100 000 presentations a
year. It has been a struggle for the hospital.
Mr R.H. Cook : Will
they meet their NEAT targets?
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Our national emergency access targets are average targets
across the state. Joondalup hospital will contribute to them. I have put out a
challenge to it that I want it to lead, not lag. I think it has the capability
to do that. One thing that it will do with these new beds is open an acute
medical assessment unit fairly soon, which is something under the four-hour
rule that is absolutely critical. It allows for direct admission of all medical
patients other than cardiac patients; that is, to channel through those acute
medical units. We have just had a team out here from the United Kingdom. It has
been working throughout the system. It has worked exceptionally well. It is
just winding up now. It found some changes we need to make that I think will
make an enormous difference.
Those additional beds are showing
that this government is able to work with both public hospitals that are run by
the government and public hospitals that are run by the private sector and make
fantastic gains in the health management of patients of this state.
result. The development of the Joondalup hospital that started under this
government has proved to be an enormous success. The recent development that
occurred in Joondalup has allowed Ramsay Health Care to build a brand-new
private wing, which as a result has freed up beds that have been available for
the government to use for public purposes. We are now funding 26 beds that were
created under that system. They have been totally refurbished. They were part
of the old hospital. Those beds are ready to open to take off some of the
pressure within our hospitals.
Members, particularly local members, would be pleased to know
that we are looking at the four-hour rule. Joondalup has been struggling with
its four-hour rule results because of the massive pressure that it has been
under since we opened the new emergency department out there. It had a growth
in presentations of approximately 18 per cent when the doors opened. It has now
settled down to 10 per cent or 11 per cent but it is still enormous growth and
it is under enormous pressure. It has the busiest emergency department of all
our hospitals in Western Australia, something like 100 000 presentations a
year. It has been a struggle for the hospital.
Mr R.H. Cook : Will
they meet their NEAT targets?
Dr
K.D. HAMES : Our national emergency access targets are average targets
across the state. Joondalup hospital will contribute to them. I have put out a
challenge to it that I want it to lead, not lag. I think it has the capability
to do that. One thing that it will do with these new beds is open an acute
medical assessment unit fairly soon, which is something under the four-hour
rule that is absolutely critical. It allows for direct admission of all medical
patients other than cardiac patients; that is, to channel through those acute
medical units. We have just had a team out here from the United Kingdom. It has
been working throughout the system. It has worked exceptionally well. It is
just winding up now. It found some changes we need to make that I think will
make an enormous difference.
Those additional beds are showing
that this government is able to work with both public hospitals that are run by
the government and public hospitals that are run by the private sector and make
fantastic gains in the health management of patients of this state.
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