Premier opens $60million Armadale Hospital

10/3/02
The management of public hospitals would never be handed over to private companies while Labor was in charge of the health system, Premier Geoff Gallop said today.
Speaking at the opening of the new $60million Armadale Health Campus - which the previous government had attempted to privatise - the Premier reaffirmed his Government's opposition to the privatisation of the State's public hospitals.
"The Coalition Government effectively privatised two public hospitals - Joondalup and Peel - and would have handed Armadale over to private operators had it not been for a strong grassroots community campaign," Dr Gallop said.
"The new hospital, with a separate private clinic on campus, is testament to our support for a strong public hospital system."
The Premier said the Labor Party, and particularly local MPs Alannah MacTiernan and Martin Whitely, deserved credit for keeping the new hospital in public hands.

The new public facility has a 206-bed capacity for public patients. The Galliers Private Hospital has a 61-bed capacity.
Dr Gallop said the new facilities, including a specialist medical centre co-located on the campus, would lead to improved services in the region.
"Not only has this redevelopment been completed on time, but we have already begun to see positive results in terms of patient services," he said.
Prior to this redevelopment, nearly three-quarters of local people bypassed the Armadale Health Service and went to other hospitals for treatment. Now, more than half of the local community now attend Armadale Health Campus in the first instance.
"That's good news for the people of Armadale and very good news for our main teaching hospitals, which no longer have to carry that additional load," Dr Gallop said.
The $60 million Armadale Health Campus redevelopment consists of:

• a 90-bed acute inpatient unit;
• a 25-place day procedure unit;
• a 10-place renal dialysis unit;
• a six-chair chemotherapy day patient unit;
• a 41-bed mental health inpatient unit;
• a rehabilitation and aged care facility with 24 inpatient restorative beds;
• six public operating theatres;
• and eight-chair public dental health clinic; and
• a fully equipped emergency department.

Dr Gallop said the health campus also offered other services, including satellite renal dialysis, public dental services, same day surgery, acute adult psychiatric inpatient services, child and adolescent mental health services and a medical oncology service.
"Provision had also been made in the Armadale Health Service budget to fund additional births and chemotherapy cases at Armadale, as well as to expand renal dialysis in the new building," he said.
Galliers Private Hospital - a 61-bed hospital with day procedure theatre - and a specialist medical centre providing a wide range of private consulting services to the community will also be co-located on the site.
Dr Gallop commended health service staff for their flexibility and professionalism, which kept the hospital fully operational during the four-and-a-half years of redevelopment.
Premier's office: 9222 9475