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Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Box Hill Electorate 

Box Hill Hospital Redevelopment Delays

Robert Clark 985 Views

Hansard: 22 November 2007 ASSEMBLY

Box Hill Hospital: redevelopment

Mr CLARK (Box Hill) — The recently tabled annual report for 2006-07 of Eastern Health highlights the government’s delay in committing to the long-awaited redevelopment of Box Hill Hospital and the uncertainty being created for the hospital and the community. Page 35 of the report reveals that a final business case for the new hospital was endorsed by the Eastern Health board and the Department of Human Services as far back as December last year.

Despite this, and despite the government’s election promises, the redevelopment was not funded in the state budget. Now almost a year has passed and there has still been no funding commitment. The annual report also makes it clear that Eastern Health has not even been told by the government when a decision on a funding commitment will be made and that in the absence of a commitment only limited further work is proceeding.

The continued delay in the redevelopment is forcing hardworking doctors and staff to struggle with rising patient numbers in an ageing and inadequate facility. This is the reason that Box Hill Hospital now has some of the worst patient treatment figures in Melbourne. The number of patients on the waiting list for urgent or semi-urgent surgery reached 1417 as at June this year, according to the June 2007 Your Hospitals report, compared to 507 as at June 1999. That amounts to a massive 180 per cent increase under the Bracks and Brumby governments.

Only 40 per cent of semi-urgent patients are treated within the recommended 90 days compared with the government’s own benchmark of 75 per cent; only 58 per cent of urgent emergency patients are treated within the benchmark of 30 minutes; 39 per cent of non-admitted emergency patients are forced to wait for more than 4 hours for treatment. The redevelopment of Box Hill Hospital needs to proceed urgently.

Mr Stensholt interjected.

The SPEAKER — Order! I ask the member for Burwood not to interject in that manner during the making of a members statement.