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Where does the buck stop in health?
27 November 2008
The Prime Minister must deliver a fairer share of public hospital funding at Saturday’s Council of Australian Government (COAG) meeting to allow Victorian public hospitals to make crucial improvements to capacity and patient care, AMA Victoria president Dr Doug Travis said today.
“Three weeks before last year’s federal election the Prime Minister told Australia that he was going to take responsibility for the performance of our nation’s hospitals,” Dr Travis said. “The Prime Minister told Australia that in health care reform, ‘the buck stops with me’.”
Dr Travis said despite the Prime Minister’s assurances, Victorian public hospital performance had declined markedly since the election of the Rudd Government.
Based on the Victorian Government’s own figures, 363,000 patients of Victoria’s public hospitals last year failed to receive care in a clinically appropriate timeframe.
“The state’s growing population is putting a strain on beds, nurses, doctors and infrastructure,” Dr Travis said. “We have a health system that was once second to none now becoming second class.”
Dr Travis said the Victorian Government had been increasing funding into public hospitals but the Commonwealth had been missing in action.
“Ten years ago, the Commonwealth Government put in $1.15 for every $1 the State Government contributed. The most recent figures show that now, for every $1 of State Government hospital funding, the Commonwealth is putting in just 68 cents.
“Mr Rudd is currently 32 cents short of the buck,” he said.
“Victoria’s hospitals need to embark on the next round of reform and innovation to provide for the future health needs of Victoria. We need better clinical management, a patient-focused system, improved information technology and a smoother interface between general practice, hospitals and other community based care.”
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