27/8/2009

Health Minister must answer questions during Friday Tweed Hospital visit and meet cancer patients

“What if anything does he plan to do about the Tweed Hospital crisis?”

NSW Health Minister John Della Bosca has some serious questions to answer and he should also attend the Rally for Radiation when he visits the Tweed Hospital tomorrow, according to Tweed Nationals MP Geoff Provest.

“Despite the Minister's earlier denials, it is now confirmed that he will be visiting the Tweed Hospital tomorrow, and the Tweed needs to hear what he plans to do if anything to address the Tweed Hospital crisis,” Mr Provest said.

“Why are the thirty beds officially opened over a year ago still not fully operational, why has he removed 28 frontline positions when the hospital is already operating at over 100 per cent capacity, and why is there no planning money for the inevitable future expansion of the hospital?”

Mr Provest said the Minister would be insulting Tweed cancer patients if he failed to show up at the Rally for Radiation at the Civic Centre at 12.30PM.

The Daffodil Day rally aims to press the case for local radiation therapy services to help the Tweed's 3500 cancer patients, with speakers to include local oncologist Dr Ehtesham Abdi, the NSW Cancer Council, swimming legend and cancer survivor Linda McGill, and Tweed patients.

“Despite repeated email and fax invitations, I am yet to get a response from Mr Della Bosca. He is going to be less than one hundred metres from the Civic Centre, so he really should make the stroll over,” Mr Provest said.

“He will be treated with the courtesy and respect his position entitles him to, and he will leave the Tweed with a much better understanding of our very serious health challenges.”

“If he just waltzes in and out for a press conference, then it will just be another case of taxpayers bankrolling the Labor spin machine,” Mr Provest concluded.