Mildura electorate
Jade BENHAM (Mildura) (14:46): (522) My question is to the Minister for Health. Mildura Base Public Hospital is $23 million in the red in the first six months of the financial year – or to the constituents in Mildura, costing more but delivering less despite staff on the wards and in the emergency department working harder than ever before, and we thank them for that. Here are the facts: hospital admissions down 12 per cent; fewer babies born, down 14 per cent; dialysis treatment down 6 per cent; and no increase in ambulance arrivals. The annual report is not searchable on the website. Accessing data is impossible. Meanwhile the government says the master plan will not be released to the public – in a publicly managed hospital. ED wait times are among the worst in the state, and no comparative data year on year is available to the public to get clarity on their hospital. Meanwhile rumours swirl about government-mandated amalgamations. Minister, what is the government hiding about Mildura Base Public Hospital?