Released 24/03/2022 - Joint media release
The ACT Government will continue to fund the public health system our growing city needs, with further health investments to help deliver the Critical Services Building (CSB) at the Canberra Hospital and more funding for our COVID-19 health response to be included in the upcoming Budget Review.
This year’s Budget Review will support our city’s economic recovery from COVID-19 lockdowns – protecting and creating good local jobs as we continue to respond to the global pandemic.
$105.3 million will a be allocated to our COVID-19 health response as we prepare for an anticipated increase in COVID-19 cases through our colder months.
This investment will mean that Canberrans will be able to continue accessing testing at Government sites around the city, and vaccinations will continue to be delivered by the Government.
As our public health response continues, the ACT Government is continuing the delivery of health commitments we made at the 2020 ACT election, including the expanded Canberra Hospital and the hiring of more than 400 additional health professionals.
A further $18.2 million will be invested in operational commissioning to support the opening of the Critical Services Building (CSB) at the heart of the Canberra Hospital expansion project in 2024, a building that will deliver more emergency, surgical and critical care capacity for the ACT and surrounding region.
The new funding will support:
- detailed workforce planning and targeted recruitment activity
- consultation on the clinical models of care
- development of workforce orientation, education and training modules
- selection, procurement and installation of equipment
- testing equipment and training staff to operate it
- establishing inventories for consumable and pharmaceutical products
The Critical Services Building is the centrepiece of an ongoing improvements of the hospital campus, and will deliver better healthcare where and when Canberrans need it. The construction of the facility will also support hundreds of jobs during it’s construction.
Quotes attributable to Chief Minister, Andrew Barr:
The pandemic is not over, and it’s important for Government’s at all levels to do what we can to prepare our healthcare system for winter, where we expect to see a flu season for the first time in two years and a potential surge in COVID-19 cases.
However, while our public health response remains ongoing, the ACT Government is making the choice to support the economic recovery of our city by investing in major infrastructure projects across our public health and education systems.
Not only do these investments create local jobs during their construction, it will also allow us to hire more teachers, nurses and doctors to deliver the services our growing city will need into the future.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Health, Rachel Stephen-Smith:
The Critical Services Building is designed to incorporate the latest advances in medical technology and contemporary hospital design. It will use patient-centred models of care that will maximise safety, health outcomes, operational efficiencies and engineering services, to deliver exceptional health care to the community.
On the workforce front the preparations start now, including the development of workforce plans, job specifications, recruitment strategies and bringing new clinical and support staff on board.
As with any hospital there is plenty of behind-the-scenes work that goes on – things like facility maintenance specifications, software and hardware mapping for all departments and risk management planning.
Overall, it’s a huge project but a very exciting one for the future of critical health care in the ACT.
- Statement ends -
Andrew Barr, MLA | Rachel Stephen-Smith, MLA | Media Releases