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The Hon. JOHN TINGLE: My question without notice is addressed to the Minister for Health. What assurances can the Minister give to the staff at the Port Macquarie Base Hospital as to their future job security? Is it a fact that the northern health region chief executive officer, Chris Crawford, wrote to hospital staff telling them that the jobs would be "deleted"? Can the Minister explain what this word actually implies? Did Mr Crawford also indicate in his letter that 68 jobs would be permanently "deleted" and, if so, what effect will this have on the effective running of this important hospital?
The Hon. JOHN HATZISTERGOS: Earlier this year the Government acquired Port Macquarie hospital lands and operations from the private operator. This is the hospital that the Coalition put into private hands and which the Auditor General indicated in his report was the equivalent of "paying for the hospital twice then giving it away". That is what he said: paying for the hospital twice then giving it away. Communities in Port Macquarie and surrounding districts now have the certainty in the future of local health services that they deserve. Port Macquarie hospital now operates effectively within the North Coast Area Health Service health services network.
The majority of staff at the hospital took the opportunity to transfer to the public health system under terms at least as favourable as their previous arrangements with the private operator. The New South Wales public health system is restructuring with the amalgamation of 17 area health services and their administrations into eight. The restructure is aimed at redirecting administrative savings to front-line clinical services. Doctors, nurses and other clinical staff providing direct patient care are amongst the staff affected by the restructure. These amalgamations will lead to a reduction in New South Wales of over 1,000 positions from area health services, with the jobs to go largely out of management and administrative positions.
New South Wales Health, however, has a policy of active redeployment where that is appropriate. Area health services are consulting with unions and staff at the local level about deployment and targeted voluntary redundancies where appropriate. It should be noted that the reduction in administrative positions across New South Wales would result in savings of approximately $24 million in 2005-06 and $70 million in 2006-07. If the Opposition is worried about these positions it should tell us where it will get rid of the 29,000 staff in the public sector over two years that it has promised, should it win government. Tell us where they are coming from?
The savings from these changes will be required to be put into front-line clinical services. The Department of Health will be monitoring the savings made by area health services to ensure targets are met, and that the funds saved go towards providing better and more clinical services for their communities. North Coast Area Health Service will reduce managerial and administrative positions by 68.
Letters have been sent to 308 staff in the area health service advising that their positions have been affected by the restructure and seeking expressions of interest for voluntary redundancy. Letters were sent to 64 staff in the Port Macquarie area. No permanent staff currently employed to provide services at Port Macquarie Base Hospital have received such letters. Some temporary staff at Port Macquarie Base Hospital whose substantive positions are area health service positions not with the hospital have received letters advising that their existing positions have been affected by the amalgamation.