January 19, 2016
by Anne Miller
Ratepayers hoping for a speedy resolution to the future of the South Burnett Private Hospital at the special Council meeting called for Thursday look set to be disappointed.
southburnett.com.au understands last-minute interest shown by a private operator to take over the running of the hospital has fallen through, which leaves a Council-managed operation the only alternative.
Some councillors are keen to pursue this, saying the closure has left a hole in our local economy.
However, there are also concerns there are risks for the South Burnett Regional Council in being the ultimate operator of a fully functioning private hospital.
Sources say the hospital is not financially viable in its current format.
Two hospital operators and a number of day surgery operators have investigated the future use of the hospital building, which Council owns. All apparently turned it down for a variety of reasons.
Despite more than 10,000 people signing a letter of support to keep the hospital open, Councillors are now reporting negative feedback from ratepayers, especially those living outside Kingaroy and those without private hospital insurance.
This feedback says Council should not become involved in the long-term operation of a hospital, even with a skilled hospital management team in place.
A day surgery is believed to be the only model identified that could be profitable.
Local GPs and visiting specialists are also believed to support a day surgery model.
Thursday’s meeting is expected to consider a recommendation that Council seek to have the hospital licence transferred into its name from Pulse Health.
This would then give it more time to prepare a business plan for the facility.
In the meantime, visiting specialists could continue to use the consulting rooms.
However, some councillors fear even a day surgery model could prove to be too expensive because the cost of new equipment and building work would also have to be factored into the financial calculations; some sections of the building do not meet current hospital building standards.
And if the hospital continued to make a loss, that cost would be borne by ratepayers.
The cost of preparing a business case has been estimated at up to $150,000.
Only 25 per cent of the local population had private health insurance in 2008. In 2014, 45 per cent of Queenslanders and 47 per cent of people nationally had private cover.
Related articles:
- Hospital Meeting Now On Thursday
- Brown Blasts Council Over Hospital
- Hospital’s Fate Decided Next Week
- South Burnett Private Hospital Decision Delayed
- Hospital Decision Soon
- Council To Vote On Running Hospital
- Council Candidate Claims ‘Ego, Emotion’ For Hospital Decision
- Talk Of ‘Plan B’ Angers Mayor
- Doors Still Open At Private Hospital
- Mayor Hits The Road
- What More Can We Do?
- Huge Response To Hospital Campaign
- Why I Want To Be Mayor
- Mayor Appeals For Public Support
- Council Still Looking For Hospital Operator
- Still A Glimmer Of Hope For Hospital
- Hospital Deadline Looming
- Council In Talks With Qld Health
- Why We Need Our Private Hospital
- Closure Would Be ‘Absolute Disaster’
- Fingers Crossed For Private Hospital
- Mayor Off To Brisbane For Hospital Talks
- Mayor Gutted Over Hospital Closure
What does it take for the Council to understand the Private Hospital closed due to the first principle of business, no profit no operation. Start supporting our current operational hospital, get behind the hard-working staff and get our elected representatives working on an upgrade to our facilities so ALL the residents of Kingaroy and surrounds have a state of the art facility that ALL can benefit.