A majority Labor Government would begin work on
redeveloping the Repatriation Hospital from day one of its term.
A total of $390 million has been committed to complete
Stage 3 of the existing Royal Hobart Hospital masterplan by establishing a
second campus at the former Repatriation Hospital site.
The fully costed plan includes a state-of-the-art
mental health facility, new day surgery and endoscopy units, and new
rehabilitation and palliative inpatient care units.
Labor’s ambitious construction timeline would see
patients begin to be treated within two years of the project’s commencement
with construction to be fully completed by 2025.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said the biggest issue
facing Tasmania’s public hospitals was a lack of space.
“Under the Liberal Party our emergency departments
have become overcrowded and overwhelmed which puts so much pressure on our
hardworking health staff,” Ms White said.
“This results in a massive backlog of untreated cases
in the community, which is growing by the day and severely impacting the health
of Tasmanians.
“Our plan to redevelop the Repatriation Hospital site
will allow the transfer of key services from the RHH, opening up more space for
emergency and specialist beds.”
Shadow Health Minister Dr Bastian Seidel said
Tasmanian hospitals have the worst wait times for specialist beds in the
country.
“The Liberal Party has dithered on this issue for far too long,” Dr Seidel said.
“If elected, we will get straight to work on solving the crisis the Liberals have created in Tasmania’s hospitals and on redeveloping this site to give Tasmanians the medical care they require.”
Rebecca White MP
Labor Leader
Dr Bastian Seidel MLC
Shadow Health Minister
