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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 301 asked in the Legislative Council on 12 October 2021 by Hon Dr Steve Thomas

Question Directed to the: Minister for Mental Health representing the Minister for Health
Parliament: 41 Session: 1


Question

I refer to imaging services in the South West Health Campus in Bunbury and the Busselton District Hospital, and I ask:
(a) when will the MRI machine in the South West Health Campus in Bunbury be upgraded;
(b) what are the usage numbers for the Bunbury MRI machine;
(c) how much of the usage of the Bunbury MRI machine is for patients from the local government areas of Busselton and Margaret River;
(d) how much of the usage of the Bunbury MRI machine is for patients with home addresses outside the South West, and how many of these were on holiday in the local government areas of Busselton and Margaret River;
(e) when will the Busselton Hospital be equipped with its own MRI machine;
(f) what are the usage rates of CT scanners in Bunbury and Busselton, and is more capacity needed at either location; and
(g) will any additional CT capacity be installed in Bunbury or Busselton?

Answered on 16 November 2021

I am advised:

(a) The MRI machine in the South West Health Campus (SWHC) is owned and operated by the contracted provider of medical imaging services for the WA Country Health Service (WACHS). The owner of the MRI is responsible for decisions about upgrading the machine. 

 

(b) 2,072 MRI scans were performed in Bunbury under the WACHS contract in 2020/21.

 

(c) The SWHC MRI did 466 scans for public patients with Margaret River and Busselton postcodes in 2020/21.

 

(d) The SWHC MRI did 121 scans for public patients with postcodes outside of the South West region in 2020/21. It is not possible to identify how many of these referrals where for people holidaying in the region.

 

(e) There is currently no plan for a MRI to be installed at the Busselton Hospital.

 

(f) In 2020/21 WACHS referred 12,651 patients for CT scans at the SWHC and 5,619 for CT scans at the Busselton Hospital. WACHS is currently reviewing the demand as part of health services planning across the South West region.

 

(g) WACHS South West is currently planning for the redevelopment of Bunbury Hospital and services across the region. Any additional CT capacity required would need to be considered through capital and services planning processes.