Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Robertson for her question. She has a keen interest, like many in this House, in news of the new 28 superclinics that were committed to during the election campaign. But I would like to give the House first an update, as I was asked to, on the first 36 superclinics. We are just over the halfway mark since the introduction of that program, a five-year program. We have seven operational superclinics across the country, we have eight that are operating early services, we have 17 that are under construction and we have more than a quarter of a million services that have been provided through the superclinics.

I will give you a couple of short examples. I recently visited the Geelong superclinic, which services the electorates of Corangamite and Corio. The Prime Minister also visited that superclinic, just before its formal opening on 30 August. That service now has seven GPs. It has practice nurses, a physiotherapist, an exercise physiologist and a podiatrist. It has students commencing next year who will be trained in the superclinic, as part of the academic year. I know that the new member for Solomon has been to the Palmerston superclinic. It opened on 4 October and has been providing after-hours services since December 2008. It now has GP services, practice nurses, physiotherapy, dietetics and a clinical psychologist. The member for Blair, I understand, visited his GP superclinic in Ipswich. Its first stage has been opened and has had a very good reaction from patients, staff and the community.

As well as talking about our existing program, I want to update the House on the process that has started for the new 28 clinics that are part of our $7.4 billion health reform plan. Many MPs in this House will know that I wrote to them some weeks ago seeking some further information, given that the opposition has opposed superclinics—

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