Health—Primary care access
89. Ms Caitlin Collins to the Minister for Health:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's commitment to delivering greater access to health care for Western Australians.
(1) Can the minister provide an update to the house on how this government's expansion of primary care services in pharmacies is supporting local communities?(2) Can the minister outline to the house any further commitments to boosting access to care?Ms Meredith Hammat replied:
I thank the member for her question and for her advocacy in this area.(1)–(2) Our government knows how important it is to deliver greater access to health care. That is why, over the last few years, our government has delivered reforms to allow women to get the care they need, when they need it. This has included changes to allow pharmacies, in particular, to treat urinary tract infections. Since that program began, the member will be interested to know that almost 13,000 women have utilised this service across almost 550 participating pharmacies all around Western Australia. We have also delivered the oral contraceptive resupply pilot, which is being delivered from 136 pharmacies around WA. These reforms mean that instead of booking to see a GP, people can get access at their local pharmacy. This will save women time and money. But we know that there is more we need to do in this area, and that is why at the recent election we made further commitments to boost access to health care. That includes work to deliver training for GPs so that they can both diagnose and prescribe medication for ADHD, which will make it easier and more affordable for patients to get the care they need. We will deliver the GP Ask program, which will provide GPs with real-time access to specialists to avoid patients having to go to appointment after appointment when it is not necessary.Our government knows that delivering greater access to care in the community will allow for better outcomes for patients. It will save them time and it will save them money. That is why we are going to continue to drive these reforms to deliver greater access to care for Western Australians, when and where they need it most.The Speaker: The member for Roe, with the final question.
