Hospital boom comes to an end
The State Government's spending bonanza on hospitals is winding down, with several mooted projects, including a new northern suburbs hospital, put on the backburner.
_The West Australian _has confirmed that several projects, including a plan more than a decade old to replace ageing King Edward Memorial Hospital, are on hold indefinitely.
Doctors say it signals the end of a golden age in rebuilding that has seen more than $3.5 billion poured into major projects in recent years, including the $2 billion Fiona Stanley Hospital, the $1.2 billion Perth Children's Hospital and the new Midland public hospital.
The 99-year-old KEMH for women and infants was slated for replacement by the previous Labor government as part of a super campus in Nedlands after experts agreed it should be sited next to the new children's hospital and Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.
Health Minister Kim Hames said in 2011 that plans to replace KEMH were likely to begin in three years, though funding for the project - likely about $1 billion - had not been approved.
But his office said this week there was still no start date but a site had been reserved for the project at QEII Medical Centre.
In the meantime, a detailed plan was being drawn up to ensure buildings and equipment at KEMH were maintained for specialist tertiary services.
Last year Dr Hames also raised the possibility of a new hospital north of Joondalup, probably at Alkimos, and either a major expansion or new hospital at Osborne Park.
But his office said this week there had been no further investigation into a hospital at Alkimos, though $220 million was being spent on upgrading Joondalup Health Campus to service the northern corridor.
Osborne Park Hospital recently underwent upgrades but there were no formal plans to redevelop it significantly.
Australian Medical Association WA president Michael Gannon said he appreciated it was a changing economy and priority had to go to the running costs of existing hospitals.
But it was a mistake not to move KEMH before the new children's hospital was built.
"It's unfortunate that the Alkimos hospital has been put down the pecking order, but it's absolutely essential for best practice that the women's hospital is moved to the general hospital site in the short to medium term and not be freestanding," Dr Gannon said.
