The Allan Labor Government is marching ahead with mergers of regional health services, regardless of its spin and rhetoric.
Yesterday it was revealed regional health will be consolidated into five “local health service networks” – Barwon South West, Grampians, Loddon Mallee, Hume and Gippsland.
Premier Jacinta Allan claimed there will be no “forced” amalgamations, but these are mega-mergers which also create another level of bureaucracy.
“We need local hospitals for local people, but these mergers take management and key decision making away from locals,” The Nationals’ Member for Morwell, Martin Cameron, said.
“As the central hub for the ‘Gippsland network’, Latrobe Regional Health has been lumped with the impossible task of providing more than 85% of care, over time, for the whole of Gippsland.
“The immense pressure this will place on services and staff at LRH is unconscionable, and more importantly, this will undoubtedly lead to poorer patient outcomes.
“Regional patients will have to travel hundreds of kilometres from where they live to access basic services.
“If it looks like a merger, impacts hospitals like a merger, then it is a merger.
“It is illogical to think adding another layer of bureaucracy would ever make Victoria’s health system more efficient.
“This has all happened because Labor can’t manage money and regional health services are paying the price.”
