❓ Ms. Beard questions the Minister for Health about prioritising maternity services in Carnarvon, given pressure on the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The Minister defends the government's record on expanding midwifery services and criticises the previous government's closures.
AnsweredQoN 300Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MATERNITY SERVICES — CARNARVON
300. Ms M. BEARD to the Minister for Health:
I have a supplementary question.
With the Royal Flying Doctor Service under increased pressure in a wealthy
state, will the minister be prioritising the Carnarvon maternity services to
work towards having this completed by the end of the year, when possible?
300. Ms M. BEARD to the Minister for Health:
I have a supplementary question.
With the Royal Flying Doctor Service under increased pressure in a wealthy
state, will the minister be prioritising the Carnarvon maternity services to
work towards having this completed by the end of the year, when possible?
AnswerView source ↗
I do not know what birthing
services have to do with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, because births are
generally planned around —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please!
Ms A. SANDERSON : When someone has an acute issue, they
would have to go to a tertiary service. That is how clinical services work. We
have expanded midwifery group practices across the state, more than has ever
been done before. This government's commitment to quality birthing
services, birthing choices and maternity services is unparalleled. The member's
government did not come anywhere near it. It came absolutely nowhere near it.
We have increased the number of midwifery group practices in Carnarvon,
Manjimup, Bridgetown, Northam, Collie and, more recently, in Margaret River.
That is on top of existing group practices in Bunbury, Narrogin and Broome.
Actually, the Liberal–National
government closed birthing services at Katanning and Northam. They were closed
under the Liberal–National government. The member's party has
no credibility in this area. It is this government that is expanding maternity services. It is this government that is
providing acute and tertiary maternity services that are better for regional
women. It is better for regional woman in Murdoch. At some point, the Leader of
the Opposition and the Nationals WA will have to have a public position
on this. Will it support its junior coalition partners to concentrate all those
maternity services in the central area, or will it support a model that
supports regional women?
services have to do with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, because births are
generally planned around —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please!
Ms A. SANDERSON : When someone has an acute issue, they
would have to go to a tertiary service. That is how clinical services work. We
have expanded midwifery group practices across the state, more than has ever
been done before. This government's commitment to quality birthing
services, birthing choices and maternity services is unparalleled. The member's
government did not come anywhere near it. It came absolutely nowhere near it.
We have increased the number of midwifery group practices in Carnarvon,
Manjimup, Bridgetown, Northam, Collie and, more recently, in Margaret River.
That is on top of existing group practices in Bunbury, Narrogin and Broome.
Actually, the Liberal–National
government closed birthing services at Katanning and Northam. They were closed
under the Liberal–National government. The member's party has
no credibility in this area. It is this government that is expanding maternity services. It is this government that is
providing acute and tertiary maternity services that are better for regional
women. It is better for regional woman in Murdoch. At some point, the Leader of
the Opposition and the Nationals WA will have to have a public position
on this. Will it support its junior coalition partners to concentrate all those
maternity services in the central area, or will it support a model that
supports regional women?
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.