HOSPITALS — BED CAPACITY
146. Ms L. METTAM to the Premier:
I have a supplementary question. We
understand the concept of surge capacity. The question is: why are those empty
beds being held back, given that our health system is clearly in crisis, which
should trigger the activation of increased capacity?
Mr M.
McGOWAN replied:
I just explained this; I will
explain it to the member again. If 100 per cent of the beds are occupied, let
us imagine someone comes into the hospital who has just been in a car accident.
Where do they go? There is no capacity available. Let us imagine that someone
comes in who has just been in a bus crash. Let us imagine that someone comes in
who has just had an aneurysm or a heart attack. There is no capacity for them.
Therefore, there is always capacity available for people to come in,
particularly in emergencies. I think that makes sense. I would have thought
that the member would think that that makes sense. If every single bed is
occupied, where do those people go? Therefore, there is a turnover of beds
because people are coming in and people are leaving. We do not have someone
leave a hospital bed and a room with someone outside the room ready to come in,
because there is actually work that needs to go on in that hospital room to
prepare the bed for the new patient. Therefore, that is the way the system
works. I would have thought that that is patently obvious; it is staring us all
in the face that that is the way it should work. When an ambulance arrives at
the hospital with someone who has just had a heart attack and who is
potentially going to die, there is a bed available for that person. Does that
not make sense? I think everyone across Australia understands that concept.
Everyone across the health system understands that concept. The only person who
does not understand that concept is the member for Vasse.