Wednesday, 22 February 2023

 Daniel ANDREWS (Mulgrave – Premier) (14:05): I am delighted to rise to update the house, including the Leader of the Opposition –

John Pesutto interjected.

Daniel ANDREWS: Can I get a word in? Very good. It is all about him, apparently. Well, no, it is not all about him, because on Sunday it was all about an Australian first: the only heart hospital of its kind in our nation, an absolutely amazing achievement. Congratulations and thanks to everybody who built it, everybody who was there designing it and of course all of those dedicated health professionals, clinician researchers, engineers and so many others who will work in this new Victorian Heart Hospital, a centre of teaching, training, research and treatment. This is a unique model of care and a unique partnership bringing together so many different disciplines and so many different professionals to look at not just the best treatment but also the gathering of the best evidence, the next big breakthrough, whether it be in implantable devices, therapeutics, other pharmaceutical interventions, surgical interventions or imaging technology, and very important work in relation to prevention. Of course this is all about changing lives and saving lives, and just as one example, a very real focus of this new Victorian Heart Hospital will be looking at the gendered nature of cardiac care, in that cardiovascular disease and cardiac disease present differently in men and women. There are enormous opportunities and, can I say, obligations for us to do more and do better in that space: 206 beds, 2150 cardiac surgeries, nearly 30,000 emergency presentations, nearly 110,000 consultations and outpatient appointments. And you know what, it is pretty good for jobs too, because it was built by Victorians and it will save lives across our state.