Former Chief Health Officer Tarun Weeramanthri says government needs to invest and prepare for the future
THE NT Government needs to start investing more money into public and preventive health to prepare for the future in the wake of COVID-19, a former NT Chief Health Officer has warned
Northern Territory
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CORONAVIRUS won’t be the last health emergency the Territory faces and the NT Government needs to start investing more money into public and preventive health to prepare for the future, a former NT Chief Health Officer has warned.
Dr Tarun Weeramanthri, the newly elected president of the Public Health Association of Australia, is calling for increased investment in public and preventive health to at least five per cent of the NT’s health budget.
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“The COVID pandemic has shown the strength of public health, but also the need for further investment,” Dr Weeramanthri said.
“We can’t ignore that the risk of further pandemics is absolutely very high.
“We’ve had at least four global events which have required a co-ordinated global response in the last 20 years.
“They’re coming now every five years on average.
“This COVID crisis has been called a one and 100-year event, but it’s not. It could be a one in a five-year event.”
Dr Weeramanthri served as the NT’s Chief Health Officer from 2004-07 and oversaw Darwin’s medical response to the Bali bombings.
Dr Weeramanthri is currently advising state, territory and federal governments on the COVID-19 response.
“This pandemic has shown us the importance of preparation,” he said.
“One of the things the NT did well was it acted early because it could see that it was vulnerable to an outbreak, particularly in Aboriginal communities and in remote areas.
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“But there’s still a clear need for more preventive health funding across all states and territories.
“It would be great to see the NT commit five per cent of its budget as well to preventive health.”
It comes after the Commonwealth recently set aside $51m to support Royal Darwin Hospital over three years in the federal budget.
Deputy Chief Health Officer Charles Pain said the Territory’s health system was well equipped to handle things if repatriated Aussies in Howard Springs quarantine were to become unwell.
“It seems extremely unlikely that we would be overwhelmed by people getting sick, with all of the conditions of the safety checks that have been put in,” Dr Pain said.
Originally published as Former Chief Health Officer Tarun Weeramanthri says government needs to invest and prepare for the future
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