Jay Weatherill and Jack Snelling refuse to confirm Adelaide’s new Women’s and Children’s Hospital will be built next to the new RAH

PREMIER Jay Weatherill and Health Minister Jack Snelling continue to refuse to confirm a new Women’s and Children’s Hospital will be built next to the new RAH as promised in the lead-up to the 2014 election.

• WCH left in limbo, could be merged into other hospitals
• Govt still keeping mum on new women’s hospital

PREMIER Jay Weatherill and Health Minister Jack Snelling continue to refuse to confirm a new Women’s and Children’s Hospital will be built next to the new Royal Adelaide Hospital as promised in the lead-up to the 2014 election.

Both took to radio on Friday to promise a new hospital will be built – but declined to back the pledge on its location.

In October 2013, Mr Weatherill announced a new $600 million WCH would be built next to the new RAH. The Government released a brochure – complete with photos of cute babies and pregnant women – with a message from Mr Snelling pledging the move and saying it would be open in 2023.

Plans for the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital next to the new RAH, from 2013. Source: SA Government

The brochure included artists’ impressions showing the facility adjoining the new RAH but no money has since been set aside for the project.

Mr Snelling today said the commitment to a new hospital would be honoured but that “You can’t rush these things” and refused to say where it would be built.

Questioned on 5AA if it would be at the new RAH site he said: “We have not made a definitive decision – we need to work through what the options are.”

He said this work included discussions with clinicians and researchers.

However, Opposition health spokesman Stephen Wade said clinicians – including the Australian Medical Association – had already warmly welcomed the RAH co-location plan and noted that, going into the 2014 election, Labor pledged to set up a working group within 100 days to plan the move.

The exterior of the current Women's and Children's Hospital in North Adelaide.

“There was no working group established within 100 days ... there have been no calls for expressions of interest, no money in the forward estimates,” he said.

Mr Wade said a consultant’s report which formed the basis of Transforming Health suggested closing the hospital and spreading its services among other hospitals, and he predicted the WCH may simply be refurbished on its existing site.

The WCH has no adult intensive care unit, creating problems where sick mothers need to be transferred to other centres for care away from their newborn babies.