Wednesday, 29 October 2025

 Sheena WATT (Northern Metropolitan) (12:55): (1912) My constituency question today is to the Minister for Health in the other place. Residents across Melbourne’s Northern Metropolitan Region rely on some of our state’s busiest and most trusted health services, including the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Austin Health and the Northern Hospital in Epping. These hospitals provide world-class care for our communities, but they hold a particular importance for families in the north who depend on accessible, high-quality public care close to home. That is why I am excited about the announcement of the Allan Labor government’s new virtual hospital pilot, led by Royal Melbourne and the Austin. It will bring specialist hospital care into people’s homes using digital monitoring, real-time data and virtual consultations to deliver high-quality safe care closer to home. It will allow more Victorians to recover comfortably and safely in familiar surroundings while freeing up more capacity in our hospital beds. My question to the minister on behalf of the residents of Northern Metro is: when will this pilot commence, and how many patients are expected to benefit from these new virtual hospital services?