Frankston Hospital gets Additional Surgery Capacity
The Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, has officially opened the $3 million elective surgery ward to increase multi-day surgery capacity at Frankston Hospital.
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14 April 2010
The Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, today officially opened the $3 million elective surgery ward to increase multi-day surgery capacity at Frankston Hospital.
The new 13 bed ward for elective surgery will significantly improve the hospital’s ability to deliver faster elective surgery and expand the hospital’s capacity to deliver more elective surgery operations. The hospital has also received $319,000 for new surgical equipment.
This boost for Frankston Hospital is part of the second stage of the Rudd Government’s $600 million Elective Surgery Plan - to improve hospital services and reduce surgery waiting times.
Hospital staff advised the Minister today that since the new ward became operational they had not cancelled any elective surgery for lack of access to inpatient beds.
Under Stage One of the Plan, the Rudd Government provided $34.2 million to treat an additional 5,908 Victorians.
The $150 million Stage Two of the Plan saw $36.8 million provided to Victoria for equipment upgrades and infrastructure to reduce surgery waiting times.
The Health Minister also discussed the longer term major health reform being proposed by the Rudd Government, with Frankston Hospital staff and patients.
The Minister outlined the Rudd Government’s $650 million elective surgery guarantee, which sets a national target that 95 per cent of Australians will receive their elective surgery within clinically recommended times.
The $650 million investment will introduce:
- A National Access Guarantee for Elective Surgery under which free treatment in public or private hospitals will be rapidly provided if patients wait longer than the clinically recommended time; and
- A national target for elective surgery, aimed at increasing the current level of 84 per cent of patients treated within clinically recommended times to 95 per cent by 2014
The Rudd Government’s plan will create a nationally funded but locally run network around the country. Under this plan Victoria will receive $736 million more over four years to provide more elective surgery procedures, cut emergency department waiting times and improve primary and aged care.
This is in addition to the $3.8 billion that will be added to Victoria’s budget bottom line over the next decade if they sign up to the Rudd Government’s health reform plan.
For all media inquiries, please contact the Minister's Office on 02 6277 7220.
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