Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Most would know that I am the co-chair of the 'parliamentary enemies of diabetes'. Mr Deputy Speaker, I invite you, every other member of this place and their staff to come along to courtyard 27E between 11.30 am and 1 pm tomorrow and get your socks off to get your feet checked by a podiatrist. Diabetic foot disease costs the healthcare system $1.6 billion a year, has mortality rates worse than many cancers and results in an amputated limb every two hours. Every year there are 4,400 diabetes related amputations in Australia and 85 per cent of those are preventable. Diabetes is the leading cause of amputation. So a foot check is important for your health. Tomorrow come along and join in. We are advised that there may be inclement weather, but we have an alternative if indeed we have to shift the event.

I also thank members of the 'parliamentary enemies of diabetes' who have shot little videos of their feet and of them doing odd things in their electorate so that we will have something electronic to put back into our electorates. If members come along between 11.30 am and 1 pm they will be able to get a little promotional video of getting checked by a podiatrist. It doesn't matter if you have got great feet. Get checked. You can then put that back into your electorate so that we can send the message that people have to sit down on their backsides, expose their feet and have them looked at.