Nurse to Patient Ratios

Hansard ID: HANSARD-1323879322-147652

Hansard session: Fifty-Eighth Parliament, First Session (58-1)

Nurse to Patient Ratios

Mr MARK COURE (Oatley) (11:46:04):

My question is directed to the Minister for Health, and Minister for Regional Health. With nurses watching on from the public gallery, is Emma Gedge of the nurses union correct in saying that Liverpool Hospital ED is the only department that has recruited enough staff to meet the Minister's staff‑to‑patient ratios?

The SPEAKER:

The member for Canterbury will come to order. The Minister is capable of answering the question. He will be heard in silence.

Mr RYAN PARK (KeiraMinister for Health, Minister for Regional Health, and Minister for the Illawarra and the South Coast) (11:46:44):

— Firstly, we have all acknowledged the nurses and midwives in the gallery. I get the importance of reading from a script—that is understandable. It is particularly important when—

The SPEAKER:

Members will come to order.

Mr RYAN PARK:

Once again, I will go through the way in which the reform works so that the member for Oatley can understand it.

The SPEAKER:

I call the member for Wahroonga to order for the second time.

Mr RYAN PARK:

It is interesting that the member chose Liverpool Hospital for a number of reasons. First, on our very first day the Premier and I met with staff at Liverpool Hospital. We made clear our dogged determination and approach to reduce—

Mr Mark Coure:

Point of order: My point of order relates to Standing Order 129, direct relevance. It was a very simple question: Is Emma Gedge of the nurses union correct in saying that Liverpool Hospital ED is the only department that has recruited enough staff to meet the Minister's staff-to-patient ratios?

The SPEAKER:

The Minister will be directly relevant. The member for Canterbury will cease interjecting.

Mr RYAN PARK:

Overdue elective surgeries have been reduced by 85 per cent. Secondly, in relation to the rollout of ratios—a reform that I am sure the nurses are aware of—the Opposition does not support them. In relation to the rollout of ratios, from the very beginning we made it clear that this reform begins in our emergency departments. In relation to Liverpool—

Mr Mark Coure:

Point of order: This is my second point of order. It is a very simple point of order under Standing Order 129, direct relevance. It was a very simple question—

The SPEAKER:

The member for Canterbury will cease interjecting. The member for Oatley will resume his seat. I uphold the point of order. The Minister will be directly relevant to the question.

Mr RYAN PARK:

We are rolling out ratios, commencing in our emergency departments.

The SPEAKER:

I call the member for Dubbo to order for the first time.

Mr RYAN PARK:

When you begin a reform, you have to start somewhere in the hospital. In partnership with the nurses and midwives we made a decision to start that reform at our emergency departments, which will, for the first time in the State's history, move from a one-to-three ratio.

The SPEAKER:

The member for Oatley will come to order.

Mr RYAN PARK:

I understand in Liverpool Hospital, from memory—

Mr Mark Coure:

Mr Speaker—

Mr RYAN PARK:

—we have recruited over 30 staff to ensure we rolled that out at one of the busiest hospitals in the country.

The SPEAKER:

Is the member for Oatley taking a point of order?

Mr Mark Coure:

Mr Speaker, I ask for an extension of time.

The SPEAKER:

I deny an extension of time. The Minister will resume his seat.