The Marshall Government has committed to a landmark $86 million Southern Health Expansion Plan, to ease pressure on hospital emergency departments and provide better health services for the people of South Australia.
Premier Steven Marshall said he is proud to be leading a Government investing heavily in the health system to improve patient outcomes.
“This landmark investment will ease pressure on emergency departments across the hospital network, providing better health services to the people of South Australia,” said Premier Marshall.
“This $86 million investment will make a real difference for hospital patients and staff across the network.”
Minister for Health and Wellbeing Stephen Wade said the Southern Health Expansion Plan, which includes the provision of 45 FTE clinicians, would help address the unprecedented demand across our Southern hospitals.
“In a major boost for the southern community, we’ll expand the FMC Emergency Department (ED) by an additional 30 treatment spaces to ensure the hospital is better equipped to meet growing demand, in turn significantly reducing ambulance ramping and easing pressure on EDs across the system,” Minister Wade said.
The FMC ED expansion will provide:
12 MORE Emergency Extended Care Unit beds;
- 12 MORE treatment bays;
- 6 MORE flexible beds; and
- 45 MORE FTE doctors, specialists and nurses.
An extra $45.7 million (indexed) over the next four years has been committed to support the expansion of ED service.
Minister Wade said that “this initiative delivers on our commitments to undo the damage of Transforming Health, to reactivate the Repat and to reduce ambulance ramping”.
The first step of the Plan is transferring dementia and complex care needs patients from Noarlunga Hospital’s Myles Ward to a new, state of the art 12-bed acute specialist facility in the revitalised Repat Health Precinct.
This will enable an acute medical ward to move from FMC to Noarlunga Hospital.
This plan will prevent up to 100 ambulance transfers a week that are currently having to go to the RAH from FMC on busy periods.
Minister Wade said the Plan would stem the flow-on burden to other hospitals, especially the RAH which often acts as a pressure valve when hospitals are busy, while also ensuring people from the south won’t have to go to the RAH for care.
“Southern Adelaide has the highest proportion of elderly residents in the State and it is our responsibility to invest in services that deliver optimal care and make the most of opportunities to prosper and grow.”
SALHN Clinical Director of Emergency Services Dr Andrew Blyth said the Plan will have a positive impact on accessibility to local health services.
“We have seen a 15 per cent increase in presentations in FMC ED over the past five years, and we’re on track to treat a record 90,000 patients this year – the highest of any South Australian public hospital – so the Plan will significantly improve patient access across our southern health services,” Dr Andrew Blyth said.
“By treating patients in the most appropriate environment, we will enhance and build the clinical capacity at Noarlunga Hospital, subsequently reducing pressure on the FMC ED and becoming more self-sufficient in managing ED presentations from across our catchment area.
“The increased capacity within the FMC ED will also ensure doctors, nurses, and allied health professionals have more spaces to treat patients faster.”
SA Ambulance Service Chief Executive Officer, David Place, said the Plan will significantly improve ramping across the health system.
“Over the last five years, we have seen increases in the wait time for patients transferred from our ambulances to clinicians in FMC, which is detrimental to both patients and our paramedics,” Mr Place said.
“Once the Plan has been fully implemented, we will see reduced ambulance transfers from Noarlunga Hospital to FMC, and our paramedics will be able to return to the road sooner to service the community in the south.”
Service moves as part of the Plan will begin mid next year, with all movements in place by the second half of 2021.
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