Consultants get $11 million, teens $60 a session from Transforming Health

TEENAGERS are being paid $60 a session in focus groups aimed at selling the State Government’s Transforming Health reforms on popular social media sites.

Female doctor comforting female patient lying in hospital bed. generic. Thinkstock. Picture: Supplied

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TEENAGERS are being paid $60 a session in focus groups aimed at selling the State Government’s Transforming Health reforms on popular social media sites.

The pocket money is on top of more than $11 million paid to a key consultancy group and as much as $14 million to an “Implementation Partner” to show SA Health how to run the revamped health system.

The Advertiser has learnt the focus groups are being told their views will help promote the changes on social media and other marketing tools.

SA Health confirmed they were using focus groups with people aged from 18 for a project to counter “misinformation”.

“It is essential South Australians have the information they need about the improvements and changes we are making,” SA Health said in a statement.

“As part of this, and given misinformation being spread by some sources, we want to hear from people about what they know about our changes so we can ensure they and their families have accurate and clear information.”

One year after the Transforming Health blueprint was announced, there are now 41 SA Health staff employed on the project and its budget has risen by $14 million to $35 million.

SA Health chief executive David Swan revealed the reason for the rise in a written answer to State Parliament’s Budget and Finance Committee.

“The 2015-16 budget incorporates additional funding to support project governance, including Implementation Partner support,” he said.

“Due to the commercial contractual arrangement for Implementation Partner support, SA Health is unable to disclose the value of the agreement.”

Last year, consultants Deloitte Australia won a tender to be Implementation Partner.

In a bulletin to staff, Clinical Ambassador for Transforming Health Professor Dorothy Keefe said Deloitte was needed to “teach us how to build these changes into our practice.”

“A main role of the implementation partner will be to transfer their skills to our staff so we can maintain the pace and direction of Transforming Health into the future,” she said.

Mr Swan revealed consultancy payments include more than $11 million to the architects of the plan, McKinsey Pacific Rim.

Opposition health spokesman Stephen Wade said the consultants’ fee “staggers belief”.

“This is just the first instalment for consultancy services in what will end up being an enormous bill,” he said.

“South Australians will pay twice — as taxpayers footing the bill and as patients who travel further to get the care they need.

“McKinsey have been brought in at enormous expense despite the number of bureaucrats working in SA Health’s head office staff increasing by 158 per cent during the last 10 years.

“This massive payment reveals that Transforming Health is not clinician driven but controlled by expensive international consultants.”