Daniel Andrews says coalition’s quarantine hospital plan ‘not clinically safe’, unveils additional primary care clinics

Victorian premier undercuts state opposition’s plan to re-purpose a Covid-19 quarantine facility to treat patients who can’t find a hospital bed, announces own temporary solution to health crisis.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews at press conference at the site of the newly built Footscray Hospital. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Luis Enrique Ascui

Daniel Andrews says it is not safe to use Victoria’s purpose built Covid-19 quarantine centre to treat patients who can’t find a hospital bed, undercutting the state opposition’s plan to re-purpose the near empty facility in a bid to fix the healthcare crisis.

Leader of the opposition Matthew Guy announced on Sunday the coalition will push to use the $580M quarantine facility built in Mickleham, 50km north of Melbourne’s CBD, as a temporary treatment centre for patients who are not acute and need medication or hygiene support if they win government in November.

“Our initiative to re-prioritise as many as 250 beds in the thousand bed Mickleham quarantine facility is another way we will look at dealing with low-care patients … who could potentially come out of our hospital network into this facility to take pressure off hospitals,” he said.

“That frees up beds. That saves lives.

In one of his first major policy announcements ahead of the November poll, Mr Guy announced last week he would shelve plans to build the first stage of Labor’s suburban rail loop and use the $35bn in savings to help fix the state’s ailing health system, which has seen elective surgery wait lists blow out to more than five years and regular ambulance ramping.

Last week it emerged a woman who suffered a stroke spent more than 17 hours in a makeshift tent outside Box Hill Hospital. As well, there were reports a 16-year-old boy receiving chemotherapy waited 27 hours in a draughty hallway of the same hospital because no beds were available.

In response to plans to re-purpose the quarantine centre, Mr Andrews said he received advice on Sunday morning it was not viable.

“The answer back from the experts that the doctors, the clinical experts, is that it‘s not clinically safe to do that,” he said.

“If you are well enough to go to Mickleham for instance, then you are well enough to go home. And with programs like the better At Home program then you can go and you can be supported to do that.

The quarantine hub in Mickleham. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Luis Enrique Ascui

“It‘s not a hospital. It’s a quarantine centre. It’s specifically built to have people apart.”

The centre was constructed after Victoria’s failed hotel quarantine program in 2020 which saw Covid-19 leak into the community and spark a 112-day lockdown.

According to the Liberal party, just 34 beds were occupied as of Friday with health guidelines no longer requiring returned travellers to complete a period of quarantine.

Mr Andrews announced his own temporary solution to the state’s ongoing health crisis on Sunday, with plans to stand up five new GP-run primary care centres to ease pressure on emergency departments.

Not rail or hospitals.

Both. pic.twitter.com/BH0u9QQcfR

— Dan Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) August 21, 2022

The centres will be functional by November and offer an alternative to hospitals for patients with minor conditions like fractures, burns and mild infections.

Mr Andrews said the new bulk-billed clinics would immediately relieve pressure on the hospital system.

“We know how hard it is to find a bulk-billing doctor, we know how hard it is to find an appointment with the GP,” he said.

“They will be treating … about 300 patients per site per week. People who at the moment don’t have a choice. If you can’t find a bulk billing doctor then the only place to go is to the hospital emergency department.”