Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I can assure the chamber and Senator Abetz that we certainly will not be ripping $1 billion out of the health system. We are taking these problems seriously. In the first three months of the government, the federal health minister has met four times with her state colleagues to negotiate health reform. That is already double the number of times that the previous minister met with state health ministers in a whole year. That is how serious and how determined the Rudd Labor government is about finding long-term solutions.

Only recently the Prime Minister was in Launceston to commit to the $15 million Launceston Integrated Care Centre and to talk to healthcare professionals from the Launceston General Hospital. That is an election promise that we delivered on, just as we intend to deliver on all of our election promises. We do not do ‘core’ and ‘non-core’ promises; we just deliver on what we have promised. A nice change from the previous government, and one I am sure that the Australian public have already noted.

May I remind the chamber that this $15 million commitment was just part of the federal Labor government’s $50 million commitment to the Tasmanian health system. The integrated care centre that the federal government has committed to in Launceston will give the best possible outcomes for local families. It will utilise professionals working together in a team environment, linking hospitals, community health services and doctors. It will provide a range of services to the northern region, including mental health, outpatient chemotherapy, and allied health services such as physiotherapy and podiatry.

While I am on the topic of health funding, may I congratulate the state Labor government for just yesterday announcing a further $6 million in funding for northern Tasmanian health services. As a resident of Launceston, this is certainly pleasing news. I know the Launceston community and northern Tasmanians in general will be very pleased with this outcome. This money will go towards a number of new initiatives, including $2 million to set up a wireless communications platform within the Launceston General Hospital, $3.5 million to meet the current year costs of the natural gas conversion project and $500,000 for the purchase of medical equipment. This equipment includes a new cryostat machine to assist in the diagnosis of samples to detect breast cancer. For regional areas, this includes cardiac monitors for Flinders Island and Cape Barren Island, $8,000 for an ECG machine at Deloraine hospital and $10,000 for a new patient lift at Beaconsfield.

The implementation of a wireless platform in the Launceston General Hospital is a move to be commended. It allows doctors to use their laptops to access information at all points within the hospital with regard to the diagnosis and treatment of patients. This is a fantastic example of how technology can be used to provide better outcomes for patients and should be applauded. The natural gas conversion plan is also a scheme that should be lauded. The new equipment will take over from older appliances that utilise LPG. The natural gas powered cogeneration plant will enable the Launceston General Hospital to generate up to 80 per cent of its own energy needs.

The Labor government has committed to a range of initiatives not just for northern Tasmanians but for all Tasmanians. The GP super clinics that we intend to build in Devonport, Burnie, Bellerive and Sorell are a case in point. Not only that, but the federal Minister for Ageing, the Hon. Justine Elliot, has only just recently announced 62 new aged care places and $2.6 million in capital works on aged-care facilities in Tasmania across both Lyons and Bass—a testament to the representations of the local members of parliament, the Hon. Dick Adams and Jodie Campbell, and the sterling work they have been doing for their electorates. The provision of adequate numbers of aged-care beds is a very important starting point, especially when we consider the increasing proportion of the Tasmanian population that can be considered aged.