Thursday, 24 March 2022

Northern Victoria Region

Ms LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (12:47): (1722) My question is for the Minister for Health. One of my constituents has been suffering from kidney stones for more than 20 years. In March 2020 his GP referred him to a urologist at Goulburn Valley Health. He went on the public health system waiting list for an appointment and was advised it was a three-year wait, which is an unacceptable amount of time. Worse still, my constituent checked his appointment status just last week only to be told that the wait time had blown out to four years and one month, with a likely appointment in April 2024. My constituent has been diagnosed with a collection of stones in his right kidney and is in unbearable pain. This time frame is completely intolerable for any patient and particularly for a patient who is constantly in considerable pain. Will the minister take immediate action to decrease the unacceptable wait times for consultations with medical specialists such as urologists being experienced by patients of Goulburn Valley Health?

The PRESIDENT: That concludes constituency questions. On that, I might give just a little advice to members. Constituency questions are related to your electorate. I know Dr Cumming has raised what I still believe is not a constituency question, but I will come back to this. I think it should have been raised as a point of order, but I will get back to that.

Mr Ondarchie: On a point of order, President, I completely agree with you that constituency question are related to one’s constituency, and as a matter of fact I have four matters that have not been answered within due time. My constituency questions are very important to my residents, because they want answers to these immediate problems they have. Question 1602 is now 43 days in arrears, 1624 is 32 days in arrears, 1640 is 31 days in arrears and 1649 is 30 days in arrears. It is not acceptable for the government to avoid answering my constituents.

The PRESIDENT: Thank you for raising that, Mr Ondarchie.