Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the development of a geriatric evaluation and management unit, a GEM unit, on the southern Gold Coast, which will assist patients who require specialised care; in particular, those who are diagnosed with dementia. The proposed facility will be built at the John Flynn Private Hospital, which is a 323-bed private hospital located in the McPherson electorate in Tugun, on the southern Gold Coast. Because of its location close to the border, it attracts around 50 per cent of its patients from New South Wales, with the remainder coming from the southern Gold Coast.

The hospital provides a broad range of medical and surgical services and excels in its cardiac services. The hospital currently has two cardiac catheter laboratories in addition to nine main theatres, two day-theatre procedure rooms and an emergency care centre. The surgical profile provides for all surgical disciplines except neurosurgery and includes oncology, haematology, renal dialysis and rehabilitation.

I recently visited the rehabilitation unit, which is in the same building that will house the GEM unit. This building, Fred McKay House, is adjacent to and connected to the main hospital via a covered walkway on the first floor. This building was initially planned to be a hotel for patients and their families who may be travelling distances either from within the state or within Australia or even from overseas. However, it has been converted into a series of specialist suites and a rehabilitation ward. The rehabilitation ward caters for the elderly, in particular offering them assistance to return to home life and everyday activity. It has a range of exercise equipment to build strength as well as a fully operational kitchen that patients are encouraged to use as part of their rehabilitation in readiness to return home.

A GEM unit will provide specialised care designed to assist with the management of elderly patients, particularly those with dementia, as I indicated earlier. It will provide them with a dedicated environment for their care rather than trying to care for their specialised needs in the context of a general surgical or medical ward. I am very supportive of the concept of the GEM unit, as I am concerned about the increase in our elderly patients diagnosed with dementia and Alzheimer's and also those struggling with the very different set of issues associated with early onset dementia.

In conclusion I would like to thank and congratulate the John Flynn Private Hospital for developing their specialised care to meet our growing ageing population. The GEM unit will be a welcome addition to the community, along with the completion of the new ophthalmology service that has also been developed as part of the hospital recognising the need to ensure our ageing population has access to the best quality of life. (Time expired)

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