THE Victorian Government has been accused of using ‘stealth’ to amalgamate the state’s health system after the recent announcement of new local health service networks.
Nationals MP and shadow assistant minister for health Annabelle Cleeland said the move to ‘forcibly’ merge services posed a serious threat to local decision-making and health services across regional Victoria.
“We’ve been warning for some time that Labor was quietly amalgamating our health services by stealth,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Now, with the creation of a bureaucracy network that merges multiple health services, our worst fears have been confirmed.”
Ms Cleeland said while resource sharing and efficiency had clear benefits, the centralising of control would strip rural and regional health services of their autonomy.
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“This plan risks sidelining regional hospitals, (will) diminish local decision-making, and will lead to fewer services for our communities.
“Decisions about our local health services will be made by a new board of directors sitting outside our community."
Ms Cleeland also slammed plans for the inclusion of regional health services in networks dominated by Melbourne-based providers, with Labor planning to move Seymour Health into a network that included Austin Health, the Mercy Hospital, and Northern Health, three hospitals serving almost one million patients annually.
“This is forced hospital amalgamation, plain and simple,” Ms Cleeland said.
“It’s hard to see how regional health services can maintain a strong voice when overshadowed by major tertiary hospitals in Melbourne.”
Ms Cleeland said the restructure could leave smaller regional health providers overlooked and underfunded.
The Hume region merger is expected to impact health services across Albury, Wodonga, Benalla, Euroa, GV Health Shepparton, Alpine, Beechworth, Corryong, Kyabram, Mansfield, NCN Health, Wangaratta, Tallangatta, and Yarrawonga.
Ms Cleeland said the plan ignored the ‘realities’ of regional Victoria, highlighting limited public transport and taxi resources, fearing patients may be stranded in major hospitals.
“Many people have already shared heartbreaking stories with me of this happening,” she said.
“What works in Melbourne simply doesn’t work here.”
Ms Cleeland also highlighted the significant disparity smaller health services would face when competing for resources.
“Seymour, with just 7000 residents, will now be competing for funding and resources against major metropolitan hospitals serving nearly a million patients.
"How can our smaller health services possibly fight for their fair share?"
Ms Cleeland also said the mergers threatened the whole-of-life care currently available in the region with critical skills being lost.
“We’ve already seen (that) with the disastrous Grampians Health merger.
“We’ve also seen this at Kilmore, where the merger with Northern Health resulted in maternity services being restricted to business hours and the loss of local maintenance crews.
“Rather than expanding capacity and improving service availability, grouping regional hospitals under broader networks appears driven by budget savings, not better healthcare outcomes.”
Shadow minister for health Georgie Crozier and opposition leader Brad Battin have both demanded greater transparency from the State Government and a guarantee that regional health services will continue to receive adequate funding.
