By Broede Carmody and Henrietta Cook
Health services are breaking ranks with the state government over Victoria’s planned carve-up of health services, saying the proposed groupings could lead to longer travel times and worse patient outcomes.
At least two health services in south-east Victoria – Gippsland Southern Health Service and Bass Coast Health – have asked to be removed from the proposed Gippsland network and linked with hospitals in Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula.
Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas.Credit: Penny Stephens
Albury Wodonga Health is also quietly lobbying for changes to its grouping in the Hume region, which local doctors say is too large and punishes the cross-border community.
In August, the government said it would create 11 new health networks after it ruled out forcibly merging the state’s 76 independently governed health services following a community backlash.
If the health services were to leave the Gippsland network, it would create a headache for health officials because each regional hospital grouping is meant to service a population of at least 200,000.
Without southern Gippsland or the more densely populated Bass Coast, the Gippsland grouping would go from serving a population of about 250,000 to just 180,000 or so people.
The current Hume region – which takes in central, north-east and northern Victoria – would service more than 290,000 people in Victoria, plus 93,000 in southern NSW.
A brochure titled “A case for change” featuring the Albury Wodonga Health logo proposes splitting the Hume region in two. The brochure, seen by this masthead, was distributed to local mayors in recent days.
One half, the Ovens Murray network, would include Wodonga, Wangaratta, Benalla, Mansfield and all the shires to the east. The second half, the Goulburn Valley region, would include the Moira, Greater Shepparton, Strathbogie, Mitchell and Murrindindi local government areas.
Gippsland Southern Health Service (GSHS), which runs hospitals in Leongatha and Korumburra, has asked to be removed from the proposed Gippsland network and added to the Bayside grouping.
Health service chair Athina Georgiou said: “Travel times to larger health services in the Bayside network, particularly Peninsula Health, are similar or closer than travelling to Latrobe Regional Health.”
Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas recently wrote to all health services to request feedback, due by the end of last month, on their proposed groupings.
The idea is for there to be at least one lead hospital in each grouping that supports a catchment of smaller hospitals in areas such as major surgery.
The government insists its plan, which will open for community consultation next year, will improve patient flows and the quality of care.
But as this masthead revealed on Friday, the Department of Health has also proposed contentious cost-cutting initiatives, such as merging radiology services, beds and staff.
The Australian Society of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy, the peak body for radiographers, criticised the proposals, saying there was no capacity to merge its workforce.
“The workforce is tight, overworked and frequently burnt out,” said the society’s vice president, Naomi Gibson.
“While understanding that the health system in Victoria, as in all jurisdictions, is under stress and savings need to be made, there may be opportunities to consolidate resources that don’t impact patient safety and care.”
Border Medical Association spokesman Dr Phil Steele said the current Hume region didn’t make sense.
“It is just another example of our cross-border community being punished,” he said. “We are far too big to be ignored.”
Albury Wodonga Health chair Jonathan Green said in a statement: “Albury Wodonga Health remains deeply committed to collaborating with our region and government to deliver on the Health Services Plan.”
Victorian Healthcare Association chief executive Leigh Clarke said groupings needed to be based on where communities moved and received their care.
“[W]e expect any finalised decisions to be reflective of this,” she said, adding that the state government had consulted the sector extensively.
Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said if the government had truly abandoned forced mergers, then it would accept requests to change the network groupings.
“Under Labor, the chaos in health continues with uncertainty and confusion of planned networks,” she said.
A government spokeswoman said the new networks would enable hospitals to work together to deliver better care, while also better supporting staff.
“No decisions have been made on what they will look like,” she said, adding that the government was consulting hospitals on the networks.
A department spokesperson said more accessible, high-quality care was at the centre of all network discussions.
The government hopes to have its new hospital network groupings and governance structures in place by July next year.
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