A $15 million boost for elective surgery and dental procedures for South Australians will further advance the Rann Government’s reductions to waiting times.
Premier Mike Rann says $12 million of it will enable a further 2,395 elective surgery procedures, building on the additional 2,352 procedures performed last financial year.
An extra $3 million for restorative dentistry will further cut public dental waiting times that have already been almost halved by the Rann Government.
“This is a significant step on top of our Government securing 340 more doctors, 1,086 more nurses and opening 135 more hospital beds on average in the three and a half years we’ve been in Government.
“This Government is committed to rebuilding South Australia’s health system and we are working to deliver even more surgical procedures and dental care.
“Last financial year we almost halved the number of people waiting more than a year for elective surgery.
“Now we’re focussing on helping even more South Australians.”
Health Minister Lea Stevens says the 2,395 extra elective surgery procedures will see our State deliver around 40,000 operations in a year.
The new additional procedures will include:
- 215 joint replacements;
- 260 general orthopaedics procedures;
- 300 ear, nose and throat operations;
- 260 plastic surgery procedures;
- plus other specialties.
“This is another major step in improving the health of South Australians and it comes on top of the additional $4.75 million already allocated for extra elective surgery this year,” says Ms Stevens.
“We are also working to improve the efficiency and management of waiting lists.
“A $10 million injection last October resulted in an additional 2,352 operations performed by our metropolitan and near metropolitan hospitals.”
The Rann Government has almost halved the State’s public dental waiting times and the additional $3 million will help sustain that improvement and further cut waiting times to 26 months.
“This will be spent on restorative dentistry in keeping with the Government’s preventative strategies, and will also provide dentures for concession card holders,” says Ms Stevens.
Premier Rann says this $15 million boost comes from a Government that has already:
· delivered a record annual health budget of $2.71 billion
· Recruited 340 more doctors;
· Recruited 1,086 more nurses;
· Opened 135 more hospital beds since June 2002;
· Injected an extra $912 million of recurrent funding into our hospitals over the past four years;
· Provided an additional $200 million in this year’s State Budget in health spending over the next four years;
· Committed more than $500 million to upgrade our hospitals;
· Almost halved public dental waiting times;
· Reduced dental waiting times from a peak of 49 months in 2002 to 29 months in June 2005;
· Provided $164 million of recurrent funding for mental health services in SA, a 25% increase per year since 2002;
· In addition provided $25 million in grants to non-Government mental health organisations;
· Committed $110 million in capital works for new specialist mental health facilities;
· Spent $26.5 million on bio-medical equipment in 2004-05 compared with just $3 million in 2001-02;
· Allocated $6 million each year for Every Chance for Every Child program which:
o Offered 16,600 families a home visiting service.
o Conducted 7,017 hearing screenings on new born babies since January 2004;
o 11 country birthing hospitals are currently providing hearing screening with the remaining 11 due to commence by the end of this year.
“This Government is delivering more for health than any government ever before,” says the Premier.