The Hodgman Liberal Government is rebuilding Tasmania’s health system. The latest Report on Government Services (ROGS) confirms what we already know –the Liberal Government’s reforms are needed to fix our health system and get better results for all Tasmanians.
The Report highlights where we are doing well in delivering health care and where improvement is required.
The report shows Tasmanian public hospitals admitted two per cent more elective surgery patients in 2014-15 than the year prior.
On Monday, three new surgical theatres opened at the Launceston General Hospital and the Royal Hobart Hospital.
The new theatres will increase capacity across the public system in the second half of this financial year.
Recent data on elective surgery activity, not collected in the latest ROGs report, show that we saw wait times fall across 2014-15, with a drop of 214 days in the average overdue wait time for non-urgent patients. Statewide breakdown below.
We have increased elective surgery throughput by 5% compared to the same period in 2014-15 as a result of our reforms and record funding.
Consistent with the THS elective surgery capacity, elective surgery activity is planned to increase by 23% in the second half of this financial year, compared to the same period in 2014-15.
This will be facilitated by the strategy which includes opening of the three new theatres and the utilisation of existing private hospital contracts and the new private panel arrangements.
The Tasmanian Health Service (THS) has set ambitious surgical targets to help reduce public hospital waiting lists.
This is backed by our $76 million record investment in Elective Surgery, which Labor called on us to freeze*, as well as the additional $25 million of Commonwealth funding.
We have invested a record amount in our health system, but more needs to be done. That is why we have initiated the One Health System reforms, releasing our White Paper and Implementation Plan last year.
We have merged the three health organisations into one and we have are working closely with clinical redesign teams, led by Health Services Innovation Tasmania, to improve patient flow.
We are fixing not just our hospitals, but working across the portfolio including our strategic review of preventive health, A Healthy Tasmania and the long-term plan for mental health, Rethink, which we released last year.
With the economy growing and the Budget coming back under control, we can now invest the dividends of this into the core business of government – such as health.
Elective Surgery – Reduction in Average Overdue Days Waiting for Non-Urgent Patients across 2014-15
Hospital / Days
Royal Hobart 677
Launceston General 39
Mersey Community 77
North West Regional 68
Statewide 214
* labor_wanted_no_additional_elective_surgeries
