Wonthaggi health hopes
BY his own admission, Premier Daniel Andrews made a small contribution of $1.9 million to the Wonthaggi Hospital on Thursday.
However, the re-election of the Labor Party to government could see more funding for the hospital yet, with Mr Andrews saying he would have more to say about regional health later this year.
“Obviously, elections are all about choices and we will be giving the people of Bass Coast Shire and this region a very clear choice,” Mr Andrews told The Star on Thursday.
“We were pleased last year to announce $31m for the school (Wonthaggi Secondary College), which was a fantastic outcome and is backing local students to do their best.
“Today was a small investment area for the hospital, but it is very much needed. There’s been careful and considered planning work in terms of the needs of the hospital for the whole community. We will have more to say about health right across regional Victoria throughout the course of the year.”
In the meantime, the $1.9 million boost will go towards ongoing maintenance at the hospital. In particular, it will go towards replacing the lift, five air handling units in patient care areas, new medical air compressors, and the installation of improved emergency backup and warning systems.
The funding was granted as part of the Labor Government’s $200m Regional Health Infrastructure Fund and funding for the air units had been already announced by the government some two weeks ago.
“For the first time ever, we have been able to apply a grant for works no one really gives a lot of attention to but are critically important,” Mr Andrews said.
“Without upgrades, without replacement funding, the hospital simply can’t provide the care and support that it does.”
Acting Bass Coast Health CEO Noni Burke said the hospital was thrilled.
“It will ensure we are providing our patients with a safe and pleasant environment, and will allow us to work more effectively,” she said.
Ms Burke said the emergency lift was an important feature of the hospital for accessibility, but was often unreliable and had been out of order on a number of occasions.
Mr Andrews also discussed the Federal Government’s $100 million hospital deal, which was offered to all states.
The states were offered a percentage of the $100 million innovation fund.
“It’s a deal that sees the Federal Government’s contribution capped at 45 percent so the state is having to do more than the Commonwealth, and the indexation rate is capped. Everybody knows when it comes to providing care to those who need it most, you can’t cap health funding,” he said.
“You can’t say to someone who comes into the emergency department ‘Well, I’m sorry, we’ve reached the cap, you’ll have to come back next quarter or next financial year’. It doesn’t work that way,” he said.
“This deal is not a good deal for Victorian patients, and that’s why the Victorian Government did not sign up to it. In terms of its impact on local hospitals, Wonthaggi would suffer $8 million less funding over a five year period. That is a very significant cut in real terms, leaving this health service short, leaving the community short, and that’s why we did not sign up for that deal.”
The premier was in Wonthaggi for a gathering with Labor candidate for Bass Jordan Crugnale and stakeholders.
Supporting the community: Eastern Victoria Region MLC Harriet Shing, Premier Daniel Andrews, Bass Coast Shire Council mayor Cr Pamela Rothfield and Labor candidate for Bass Jordan Crugnale are excited to see the Wonthaggi Hospital continue to grow and provide efficient care for patients.
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Posted by Tayla Kershaw on Mar 20 2018. Filed under Featured, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
