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Media Releases My electorate office distributes information which is important to the Southport electorate in particular, and the Gold Coast in general. This information goes to the print and electronic media, however due to space or time constraints it doesn’t always get printed or broadcast. Through my website however, you can access all news stories which emanate from my office and thus keep up-to-date with State Government issues relating to Southport.
Hospital waiting list figures defended by Lawlor |
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| Posted by Administrator (admin) on Dec 11 2003 |
| Media Releases >> |
STATE Member for Southport, Peter Lawlor, has responded to claims in the Gold Coast Sun (December 10th, Page 35) that improved waiting list figures at the Gold Coast Hospital were based on 'informal information'.
National Party candidate, Bob Bennett, said he was 'making inquiries into recent reports that the Gold Coast Hospital had the best waiting list records since 1996'.
" I can tell you for a fact that those statistics are based on cold, hard and quantifiable statistics," Mr Lawlor said.
" Less than two percent (2%) of category one patients at the Gold Coast Hospital are waiting longer than the doctor recommended one month for surgery at the Gold Coast Hospital, with ninety five percent (95%) of the doctor recommended category two (semi urgent) patients receiving their elective surgery treatment within ninety (90) days.
" To give actual numbers, on the Gold Coast in the past year 201 of the 203 urgent category one operations were performed within the 30-day period recommended by doctors, meaning that 99 out of every 100 patients received their operations on time.
" And 688 out of 723 semi-urgent category two operations at the Gold Coast Hospital were performed within the 90-day period recommended by doctors, meaning that 95 out of every 100 patients received their operations on time," he said.
Mr Lawlor said Mr Bennett's comments were ironic, particularly given that the previous National Party Government never released waiting times.
" I can give Mr Bennett some more statistics, but he probably won't like them," Mr Lawlor said.
" Back in the dark National Party days of 1997, 40.5% of category two patients across the State were waiting too long for their surgery, which was nothing short of an embarrassment.
" More people were being added to the waiting lists than were being treated and the best the Coalition Government of the time could do was hope that 40% of patients would be treated on time.
" People might remember that under the Nationals, the Gold Coast Hospital was under funded by $10 million a year, prompting Gold Coast Sun-driven protests in the streets.
" In less than six years we have moved from a position where the Nationals were too embarrassed to release waiting times, to the point where 2003 is likely to go down as the best year on record for patients waiting for elective surgery in these categories," he said.
Mr Lawlor said that, rather than rest on its laurels, the government is continuing to address waiting times for elective surgery, his comments endorsing Queensland Premier Peter Beattie's recent call for the Federal Government to match his State's financial commitment to public health services.
At the moment, for every $1.00 that the Commonwealth spends on public health in Queensland, the State Government spends $1.50.
Last changed: [PUBLISHED_DATE] at 11:00 PM
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