THE Victorian government has been urged to be more transparent about the closure of Wodonga hospital's emergency department and engage in "genuine consultation". or signup to continue reading Northern Victoria Upper House MP Wendy Lovell spoke in parliament on the evening of Thursday August 30 about her concerns over the fate of the casualty ward. She called on Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas to be clear about plans for emergency in the wake of a Wodonga hospital entity service plan which appeared as new designs for the Albury hospital upgrade were released.
"The action that I seek is for the minister to conduct genuine consultation with the Wodonga community before the Allan Labor government proceeds with its plan to close the emergency department at the Wodonga hospital site," Ms Lovell said. The Liberal MP criticised the planned Albury upgrade as "underfunded" and a " plan by public service lackeys to please the minister rather than meet the health needs of the community". "The only notable point is the repeated reference to Wodonga being a non-emergency care hub," Ms Lovell said, noting 28,000 patients attend casualty there annually.
"I understand the Wodonga hospital entity service plan, which will set the future of the Wodonga hospital, underscores this closure. "There is no timeline for these changes." Ms Lovell noted there had been promises of town hall meetings to inform the public about Wodonga hospital changes.
Benambra MP Bill Tilley issued a media release on Fri.