AMA says it’s time to plan and fund a new Hobart hospital
Rather than continuing to update the Royal Hobart Hospital, the state’s medical association boss believes there’s a better way. Here’s why doctors want a new southern hospital.
Tasmania
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Planning and funding for a new hospital in southern Tasmania should be a top priority in the next state budget, the Australian Medical Association says.
AMA state president Michael Lumsden-Steel has released details of the group’s budget submission — which focused on the need to raise government revenue to cover increasing health costs.
He said that rather than continuing to struggle with upgrades to the Royal Hobart Hospital, state and federal governments should combine to fund a new hospital to complement the city campus.
“Trying to redevelop a new hospital on a current site is proving slow, expensive, complex, and challenging. Stage two — the second tower — of the redevelopment is not even on the drawing board,” he said.
“We as the current generation need to be building the healthcare system for us, but also for the future.
“We can no longer continue to rely on infrastructure that’s been built years ago … it’s our job to have a responsibility to build for our kids and their kids in the future.
“We think it can’t be too far from the existing Royal Hobart Hospital site, somewhere within 10 to 15 minutes, we need good strategic planning at a site where we’ve got scope to expand.
“We know the state can’t afford to build the infrastructure without federal government top-ups. We’ve got a federal election coming. We need to see the Feds acknowledging our financial situation, the need to build the infrastructure.”
The AMA is also seeking more funding for diagnostic and investigation capability, for better electronic medical records, for greater support for primary care and improvements to workforce planning.
It would also like to see expanded funding for virtual health care and robotic surgery.
Multiple reports have raised concerns that health funding will increase as a proportion of state expenditure over the coming decade, undermining the sustainability of the state’s financial position.
Health expenditure is projected to grow from 32.3 per cent, in 2019-20, to 40.6 per cent of total expenditure, by 2034-35.
Dr Lumsden-Steel said there was a need for a multi-partisan view of health funding endorsed by all levels of government over multiple electoral cycles.
It’s alarming and concerning to see that the state by itself probably doesn’t have the capacity to increase the revenue to meet the system and the demand that we need.
“So we need the feds and the states to get together to have frank and fearless discussions around how we’re going to find the revenue to fund the increasing healthcare demands that we have.
“We need there to be serious reform discussion around revenue raising so that we can actually fund the health care based on the demand and the services we need to provide, rather than what’s dictated at an annual budget cycle and what’s handed out by the treasurer to the Health Department.”
The state budget is due to be handed down on May 29.
Originally published as AMA says it’s time to plan and fund a new Hobart hospital
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