Category: Blog

Highlighting consumer interests with the new WA ministerial team

Posted on April 11, 2025

Clare Mullen Executive Director Health COnsumers' Council WA

At Health Consumers’ Council (HCC), we believe that meaningful change in our health system requires active consumer involvement at every level of decision-making. Following the recent ministerial appointments, we’ve reached out to the new health leadership team to highlight key priorities identified by health consumers across Western Australia.

Our key advocacy priorities

Through our engagement with the WA health consumer community and our consumer lens on the health reform landscape, we’ve highlighted several critical issues:

Consumer involvement in decision-making

Across all our ministerial communications, we’ve emphasised the need to strengthen requirements for WA Health services to meaningfully involve consumers, families, and people with lived experience at every level of decision-making. We’ve highlighted the successful Consumer Lead roles within the Women’s and Babies Hospital project as a minimum standard for future projects of similar scale.

Healthcare affordability and equity

We’ve raised serious concerns about healthcare affordability, with evidence showing some community members are missing essential healthcare due to cost concerns, with some people resorting to taking out payday loans to access necessary care.

Aboriginal healthcare equity

We’ve drawn attention to Australia’s widest gap in hospital procedure rates between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal patients occurring right here in WA. We’re advocating for increased access to advocacy services for Aboriginal patients to strengthen their voices in healthcare settings.

Reducing avoidable harm

We’ve proposed practical steps to improve healthcare safety:

  • Mandating access to independent advocates for consumers and families involved in Severity Assessment Code Category 1 Clinical Incident Investigations
  • Embedding Care Opinion across the health system as a feedback and quality improvement mechanism

Preventative health investment

We’ve emphasised the potential of community-led health initiatives, highlighting the Compassionate Communities model in WA’s South West that achieved a remarkable 63% reduction in hospital admissions. We’re advocating for accelerated rollout of similar community-led approaches.

Medical Research and Citizen Science

We highlighted opportunities to strengthen consumer involvement in shaping research priorities. We’ve proposed investment in citizen science initiatives for health and health promotion, building on WA’s reputation as a leader in consumer involvement in research.

Aged care priorities

We’ve highlighted issues around:

  • Ensuring sufficient aged care capacity so people receive the right care in the right place
  • Taking action to eliminate stigma and discrimination in aged care services
  • Protecting the sexual safety and dignity of people with dementia

Prison Health Services

With Minister Papalia (Emergency Services, Corrective Services), we’ve reiterated the Sustainable Health Review Panel’s support for transferring custodial health services from the Department of Justice to the WA Health system to facilitate more integrated physical and mental healthcare.

Looking forward

These letters mark the beginning of what we anticipate will be a constructive dialogue with the new ministerial team. We’ve requested meetings with each minister to discuss these priorities in more detail and explore collaborative approaches to addressing them.

As is clear from the range of issues we’ve raised, the opportunities to improve health outcomes and experiences for everyone in WA are many and far-reaching. We welcome the expansion of the Ministerial team as recognition of the importance and scale of this work.

As ever, we welcome your thoughts and experiences on these issues. Please continue share your healthcare stories with us, as they strengthen our advocacy work and help identify emerging issues affecting health consumers across WA.

Clare Mullen, Executive Director

Health Budget – a win for women’s health

Posted on April 10, 2025

With the federal election called for 3 May, we’ll be tracking health promises made by all of the parties and letting you know what that means for WA healthcare system consumers.  

The federal government released their 2024-25 budget on Tuesday 25 March. Health is always a topic to watch at budget time and we’ve had a look at what was included in the 2025-26 budget.  

Women’s health was a big winner in the budget and we are really pleased to see women’s health being highlighted – an area that has been ignored or only spoken about obliquely for generations. There is a $792 million package for increased rebates and more bulk billing to increase safe access to long acting reversible contraceptives. A greater number of oral contraceptives have been added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, making these medications cheaper for people who need them. Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme listings for hormonal treatments for menopause, medicare rebates for menopause health assessments and menopause training for GPs are all welcome initiatives, as is increased funding for endometriosis treatment and support, making it easier for people to receive the health care that they need.  

The nearly $8 billion spend on Medicare has been covered in many places, but this is aimed at increasing bulk billing rates across the country by increasing incentives for GPs to bulk bill. The goal is for 90% of GP visits to be bulk billed by 2030. The incentives are greater in rural and remote areas, which is a good outcome for services outside of metro areas.  

There is also funding to open 50 new Medicare Urgent Care clinics across the country. There are currently 87 of these clinics, alongside some other Urgent Care clinics run by private providers. A recent review into the Medicare Urgent Care clinics has found that while the cost to the government of care at Medicare Urgent Care Clinics is higher than standard GP appointments, and that the communication from the Urgent Care Clinics back to the patient’s usual GP could be better, the waiting times in Urgent Care Clinics are considerably shorter than those in hospital emergency departments and they give patients greater choice when looking for care, particularly after hours. 

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme co payment is being reduced from $31.60 to $25 which is an important saving for people who regularly need medications. 

Bronwyn Ife  |  Systemic Advocacy and Engagement Lead
For media enquiries: 0488 701 839

Harmony Day is a missed opportunity

Posted on March 18, 2025

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

It’s also, Harmony Day

21 March 2025 is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination it’s also Harmony Day 2025 in Australia.

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD) is recognised all around the world, except here in Australia where in the 1990s the Howard government chose to create an event called Harmony Day instead.

Harmony Day celebrates multiculturalism in Australia, which is a good thing.

But in doing so in place of addressing racial discrimination, it hides the history behind the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and discourages us from discussing the hard work required to tackle racism in Australia.

Here at Health Consumers’ Council we are committed to calling out and tackling racism in the health system. In 2019 we successfully advocated for the inclusion of racial discrimination as a category that’s measured in the WA health complaints system – along with other forms of discrimination such as ableism and ageism.  

We’re working on a project this year to highlight racism in health care by examining the issues that arise in our individual advocacy cases to see what patterns are emerging. We also use our strong relationships with health system leaders to elevate the voices of people who experience racial discrimination to the highest levels of decision making in health.  

If you have experienced or witnessed racism in WA healthcare settings you can call it out

  • Make a complaint to the health service concerned – draw attention to the fact that you believe the discrimination was based on race
  • Hospitals: https://www.hconc.org.au/individual-advocacy/how-to-make-a-complaint/
  • GPs: https://www.hconc.org.au/individual-advocacy/4-how-to-make-a-complaint-to-a-gp-or-clinic/
  • Call It Out is a simple and secure way for people to report incidents of racism and discrimination towards First Nations Peoples in any setting: https://callitout.com.au/

Bronwyn Ife  |  Systemic Advocacy and Engagement Lead
For media enquiries: 0488 701 839

Celebrating multiculturalism, inclusiveness and equitable participation in WA

Posted on March 17, 2025

This month, Qistina Taufiq, HCC’s Cultural Diversity Engagement Officer, and Clare Mullen, Executive Director, were privileged to be invited to celebrate the WA Multicultural Awards – a program run by the WA Office of Multicultural Interests.

This is because Health Consumers’ Council was recognised as a nominee in the category of Community Service and Support – General Community Service organisation. The evening was a wonderful celebration of the diversity, capability, resourcefulness and strength of people from a wide range of culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds and the organisations that serve them.

HCC has had a targeted program of work aiming both to ensure people coming to Australia from other countries understand the WA health system and how to navigate it – as well as ensuring the voices of people from multicultural backgrounds are sought and listened to as decisions about health and healthcare are made – since 2011. Louise Ford joined the HCC team then and pioneered a program of workshops on Health Rights and Responsibilities for CaLD communities.

The program was expanded in 2015 to include HCC’s popular workshop on Supporting Cultural Diversity in Healthcare. This workshop is aimed at health service providers who want to develop their capability in ensuring health services are inclusive of people from all cultures. HCC is funded to run this workshop twice a year – and we also deliver it on a fee for service basis to a number of healthcare organisations.

In 2025, HCC will be finishing a project we’ve been working on with Cancer Council WA and the WA Department of Health to produce a range of information leaflets about cancer treatment for people from CaLD backgrounds. HCC’s role has been to support a consumer advisory group made up of people from a range of communities and cultures to inform the development and production of these resources.

Congratulations to all the nominees and winners of these important Awards.

A picture of a page from the Multicultural Awards showing Health Consumers' Council as a nominee

Employment opportunity: Individual Advocate | part-time | on-site

Posted on March 17, 2025

Advocate, part-time, fixed term for 12 months with the possibility of extension

We are seeking a skilled and passionate SCHADS Level 5 health advocate to join our individual advocacy team on a part-time (three days a week), fixed-term contract for 12 months.

It can be difficult for consumers and patients to navigate the Western Australian health system, or to give feedback if they are unhappy with any aspect of their healthcare experience. This role supports health consumers in having their voice heard within the WA health system, while assisting individuals to navigate the health system and assert their rights and provides assistance through the complaints process when needed.

The role offers:

  • The ability to make an impact in individuals’ health journeys, and their experiences of the WA health system
  • The opportunity to be a part of a workplace that is driven by championing consumer health rights
  • A welcoming, inclusive and supportive workplace, where everyone is encouraged to bring all of themselves
  • Externally facilitated team supervision
  • A competitive not-for-profit annual base salary with salary packaging
  • Flexible working arrangements including the opportunity to work from home
  • Additional leave entitlements

About you:

  • You’re looking for a role where you can apply your skills in advocacy and health rights to work that you care about
  • You’re interested in the health system and care about people’s experiences of it
  • You’re comfortable responding to people “where they are”, including when people are expressing distress about their experiences.

Individual Advocate position overview

This role sits within the individual advocacy team, and although the role functions quite independently, it is well supported by the Senior Advocates and the Advocacy Manager, as well as all other team members. In this role, most of the contact with consumers will be either on the telephone or through e-mail, however, attendance at appointments in the community with consumers is another important facet of this role.

A typical week might see you doing a range of tasks including:

  • Contacting consumers from the advocacy waitlist or being the first point of contact with consumers seeking support
  • Building advocacy plans with consumers within HCC’s scope and referring consumers to external agencies for issues that fall outside of HCC’s support
  • Attending consumer appointments in hospitals, GP practices or at community mental health sites
  • Liaising with hospital staff to advocate for consumers in relation to current health needs or retrospective complaints
  • Writing letters of complaints addressed to health service providers, in conjunction with consumers
  • Writing case notes within our Customer Relation Management system
  • Attending team meetings and supervision

See the job description for a full outline of responsibilities for the role.

To apply for the position, please submit a cover letter of no more than two pages addressing the selection criteria, along with a current resume of no more than two pages outlining your work experience, skills and any relevant education or training.

Applications that do not address the criteria may not be considered.

HCC strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people with disability, people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds and LGBTI+ people.

Selection criteria

Essential

  1. Understanding of the value of individual advocacy for consumers experiencing issues within the health system and the levers available to achieve advocacy outcomes
  2. Highly developed communication and interpersonal skills to be able to confidently advocate, negotiate, influence, mediate, de-escalate, and develop effective workplace relationships with consumers and other stakeholders
  3. An understanding of the social determinants of health, systemic barriers and complex trauma when working with people experiencing vulnerability and disadvantage, and the ability to operate with a trauma informed lens
  4. Ability to work autonomously with strong organisational skills to manage competing priorities simultaneously, in order to meet deadlines
  5. Highly developed analysis and report writing and computer skills
  6. Good working knowledge of the WA health system, community service organisations and referral pathways

Desirable

  1. Previous experiencing providing individual advocacy
  2. Tertiary qualification in social or behavioural science (e.g., social work, psychology, sociology), or previous advocacy experience or lived experience in navigating the health system
  3. Understanding of the Mental Health Act 2014

Applications close Monday 31 March 5:00 pm

If you require any adjustments to submit your application or wish to have a confidential discussion about the role, please contact Tania Harris, Engagement & Advocacy Manager on (08) 9221 3422 (Ext 1) or email tania.harris@hconc.org.au

A long awaited win in sight for transparency on health costs

Posted on March 17, 2025

By Clare Mullen, Executive Director

Today – 17 March 2025 – the Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care, Mark Butler – is speaking to a range of media outlets about his announcement that, if re-elected, a Federal Labor Government will be publishing the costs of specialist medical fees on the Government’s Medical Costs Finder website.

But wait – isn’t that the website that was set up in 2019 to do exactly that? Well, yes. But it wasn’t mandatory for doctors to add their information. And so only 70 of them did. Out of approximately 11,000 specialists in Australia.

As I highlighted in this blog article last May, it’s important that consumers – in this case patients – have access to cost information in order to make their decision about where to get specialist treatment.

Health Consumers’ Council WA represents the interest of consumers, and WA consumers particularly, on the Federal Government’s Out of Pocket Costs Transparency Reference Group. Through that group, we advocated that any health service provider that receives public funding should be required to publish their pricing information on the Medical Costs Finder website.

We hope that whoever is in Government after the next election will follow through on this commitment to patient and consumer power and ensure people can make informed decisions about specialist healthcare.

Opinion: It’s time for full transparency on who’s making money out of our healthcare

Long Covid Awareness Week 10 to 15 March 2025

Posted on March 10, 2025

Long Covid Awareness Week 

 “Long COVID is like being taken hostage in your own body, it is not just a lingering cold, it is a profound disruption to normal life. People need hope and action. Until you experience this kind of  thing you cannot fathom the amount of resilience and mental fortitude you must have to survive.”  – a consumer who lives with Long COVID 

10-15 March 2025 is Long Covid Awareness week.

Since 2020, HCCWA has advocated for the needs and interests of health consumers in relation to COVID, both in relation to information, and to healthcare. While the acute period of COVID has passed, data suggests that between 5 and 20% of Australians experienced ongoing symptoms more than three months after a diagnosis of COVID. Some of these people had experienced fairly mild symptoms when they initially had COVID, but the ongoing symptoms can become debilitating and are often poorly understood among practitioners. One survey of people in WA who were experiencing Long COVID symptoms found that around 17% of people who were working full time before their COVID diagnosis had been unable to return to full time work 90 days after their initial infections, because of the complications of Long COVID and Long COVID recovery.

Consumers have shared their journeys with us. Some of them feel that their doctors don’t believe them, or don’t believe that Long COVID is the cause of their ongoing symptoms. They also report that doctors don’t seem to be well-informed on Long COVID symptoms, Long COVID treatment, and management.

There were Long COVID clinics and Long COVID support services in Western Australia in place for a short-time, however, many Long COVID Clinics have closed. The closures were poorly managed, with patients not being informed of the closure and appointments being cancelled without alternative avenues of care being offered. The East Metropolitan Health Service Post COVID-19 clinic remains open, but it is only available to patients who reside in the East Metro catchment area or those from the Kimberley, Pilbara and Wheatbelt.  

We’re interested to know – what questions or concerns do you have about COVID or Long COVID and Long COVID community resources in Western Australia? 

Share your feedback with us via this short survey and we will share the responses with the Department of Health. 

If this topic is of interest to you, Emerge Australia is undertaking lots of advocacy work on Long COVID.

Follow them here – Emerge Australia Inc  

Bronwyn Ife  |  Systemic Advocacy and Engagement Lead
Published on March 10, 2025  |  For media enquiries: 0488 701 839

References 

Tindle, Robert. Long covid Sufferers can take heart, Australian Journal of General Practice Vol 53, No 4, April 2024 

Woldegiorgis M, Cadby G, Ngeh S, Korda R, Armstrong P, Maticevic J, Kniwght P, Jardine A, Bloomfield L, Effler P. Long Covid in a highly vaccinated but largely unexposed Australian population following the 2022 SARS coV-2 Omicron wave: A cross sectional study. Medical Journal of Australia. March 2024 

Long covid Australia, a review of the literature. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 16 December 2022 https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/covid-19/long-covid-in-australia-a-review-of-the-literature/summary) 

Costantino, V, Grafton Q, Kompas T, Chu L, Honeyman D, Notaras A, Macintyre CR; The public health and economic burden of long covid in Australia 2022-23: A modelling study, Medical Journal of Australia, August 2024 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet your HCCWA Team: Chrissy

Posted on March 6, 2025

Our team works hard for the people of WA, we’re passionate about making a difference in the lives of West Aussies and working hard to make patients, carers, loved ones—all health consumers—are at the centre of our healthcare system:  Our health. Our voice. Our healthcare. 

We like you to meet Chrissie, an integral part of our individual advocacy team.

How long have you worked at HCCWA

14 years on the 14th March (2025)

What inspired you to work at HCCWA?

I saw how an advocate from HCCWA advocated for someone that made a huge improvement in their life (teeth vs toothless).  I thought I would like to be able to help people improve their health and life like that. The consumer’s life improved dramatically.

Describe what you do.

I advocate for people in WA who have a query, concern or communication issue with a WA health service.  Sometimes it is just providing information about what a person’s rights are, what services are available,through to supporting people in appointments and meetings related to their health.  I/we aim to empower health service users to be able to advocate for themselves and their family and friends, so they may have an optimal health journey.

What do you think about HCCWA and the work we do?

HCCWA is the best place I have ever worked due to the staff who I work with (and that spans a lot of years!).

The HCC team are all amazing, caring, committed  people who go the extra mile to ensure that the clients or consumers that use our service, are at the forefront of everything we do.  We strive to do our best to help ensure health service users rights are upheld and empower them to have an improved health journey. Keeping our staff supported is key to being the best we can for our consumers.

How do you see your work helping to improve outcomes and experiences for everyone in WA?

Each day I see the work of our team supporting WA health consumers to find out more about their rights and the services available in WA. Whether it be through engagement or advocacy, consumers will know more about what  and who is available and how they might access services. Everyday I listen to consumers, assisting them to realise what is possible vs likely, providing them with tools to help them navigate the health system, or other support (referrals to other services where appropriate), enabling them to have more effective, safer and less confusing healthcare.

Ever met anyone famous?

Not for a long time but I spoke to Cat Stevens for about a minute, when he was leaving the WACA in 1970’s (I was only about 14 years old so I was in heaven for about a week after that!) and more recently, about 20 years ago, Bob Geldof came in and browsed at the antique stall I was working at in Scarborough Fair Markets.

Health consumer priorities in the WA state election

Posted on March 6, 2025

This is a follow on from our blog post outlining our priorities and listing the election commitments from the two major parties against those priorities.

Based on our discussions with consumers HCC’s priorities for health are:

  • Increased access to affordable primary care
  • Increased investment in things that help us stay healthy (preventative measures)
  • Continued improvement in the safety, efficiency and capacity of the hospital system
  • Improved access to health care in the community and closer to home.

Many of our allies in the health consumer and lived experience sector have published their specific requests for election time.  Their answers tell an interesting story of a sector where incredible work could be done if there was adequate funding, but also where there are some excellent, innovative ideas that would not be particularly costly to implement.

Let’s have a look at what’s being asked for:

Carers WA Carers Count at the 2025 State Election | Carers WA

  • $400,000 Carer hardship and carer respite grants program for WA Carers
  • Establish a Carers card
  • A new carers strategy
  • $890 000 support for young carers in regional areas
  • Establish a service navigation system for carers

Aboriginal Health Council of WA WA State Election: AHCWA’s Key Priorities – AHCWA

  • Culturally safe short stay accommodation for pregnant women
  • Affordable and appropriate housing
  • Funding for Aboriginal Environmental Health Model of care and community capacity building for remote maintenance
  • Free dental care for all Aboriginal people in WA
  • Social and emotional wellbeing and family and domestic and sexual violence program funding
  • Improved child development services
  • PATS Coordinator in each region

Developmental Disability WA Election Undertakings 2025 for people with intellectual disability

  • Introduce mandatory training on intellectual disabilities for all health staff.
  • Set up Specialist Disability Health Hubs in each health region to improve the health and mental health of PwID.
  • Ensure the State health plan includes PwID as a priority group.
  • Introduce a “flag” to identify intellectual disability in a person’s WA health record
  • Contribute to a WA Easy Read website that provides key public information about health and other government services.

Consumers of Mental Health WA Election 2025: An Election for Mental Health – Consumers of Mental Health WA

  • An alternative to Emergency departments for people in emotional crisis
  • Increase finding to co designed community and peer led mental health services
  • Independent review, co-led by people with lived experience, on strategies to eliminate force, seclusion and restraint
  • Enhance access to advocacy through mental health advocacy service
  • Commit to a human rights act for WA
  • Secure and sustainable funding to pilot Aboriginal community controlled services
  • Embark on funded commitment to the Gayaa Dhuwi declaration implementation plan

Council on the Ageing WA 2025 Election Platform  – Council On The Ageing WA

  • Waive stamp duty for people aged over 65
  • Incorporate Silver Housing Standards in the WA Building Code
  • Expand the supply of affordable housing
  • Introduce a $150 “Fit for Life” voucher for seniors, modelled on the Kidsport initiative
  • Fund a “Preparing for the Unexpected” program to support seniors who are likely to be hospitalised due to a complex health issue or frailty
  • Fund a falls prevention program
  • Provide ongoing $250 000 per annum to Council on the Ageing WA

These priorities have been informed by health consumers, people with lived experience, and input from members of the above organisations. Amplifying and championing the voices of consumers and people with lived experience leads to better outcomes, whether that be in policy development or program delivery.

Including consumer voices goes beyond consultation, it means properly involving people who use the health system to help all of us to understand and address the unfairness in the system.  

What we see when we look at this list is a commitment to important preventative health projects, and projects that would make our health system fairer for all.

These ideas would all contribute to healthier, more connected community members, who are receiving the assistance they need in their communities. This in turn improves the patient experience in our health system and reduces the pressure on the public hospital system meaning that those who need healthcare can get it promptly.

If you’ve any thoughts about any of these, please contact Bronwyn Ife at bronwyn.ife@hconc.org.au

State election – let’s look through a health lens

Posted on February 17, 2025

** UPDATED 24/02/2025**

With a state election looming, we have been keeping an eye on the announcements from both major parties to see what they are saying about health. 

At Health Consumers’ Council we are keen to see new policies and programs within the health system to help improve the experience of consumers and patient outcomes. While big spending on infrastructure is always welcome and necessary, we are also really interested in ideas that will change and improve the way people interact with the health system every day. 

We want to see increased investment in primary care, increased investment in preventative health measures, a continued focus on improving the efficiency and capacity of  the hospital system and improved access to health care in the community. 

We’ve had a look at what the major parties have said about each of our priority areas and we’ve summarised them for you, so you can decide what is important for you in health when you are going to vote. 

Our Priorities WA Labor Party WA Liberal Party 
Increased investment in primary care 
  • $8.2 million “GP Ask” program allowing GPs to communicate directly with WA Health Specialists on behalf of patients reducing the need for ED visits and referrals  
  • $14 million for women’s health centres 
  • GPs to be able to diagnose and prescribe medicines for ADHD 

 

  • $26.4 million for GP training incentives 
  • $1 million for GP community residency program 
  • $5 million GP upskilling for ADHD co prescribing 

 

 

 

Increased investment in preventative measures 
  • $39.5 million for public access to treatment at Ngala’s residential parents service 
  • $6 million to help develop more community housing 
  • $3.1 million housing first program in Bunbury 
  • $10.4 million expand Homeless Engagement Assessment Response Team 
  • $38.6 million family and domestic violence package includes increasing capacity of refuges in Geraldton, reforms to restraining orders act 
  • $850 000 for Australian Breatfeeding Association breastfeeding education classes, training and local parent groups 
  • $4 million to support development, implementation of mental health and suicide prevention programs in the workplace 

 

  • $36.3 million universal access to residential parents service at Ngala 
  • $40 million suicide prevention programs  
  • $40 million mental health prevention strategies 
  • $6 million to kids help line 

 

 

Improved efficiency and capacity of hospital system 
  • $3.3 billion to improve health infrastructure – redevelopments at Bunbury, Geraldton and Peel 
  • $104 million in improvements to Royal Perth Hospital  
  • $100 million for Midland Health campus ED  
  • $36.3 million for WA Virtual Emergency Department 
  • $2.5 million Womens’ reproductive health day procedure centre  
  • Build Womens and Babies hospital in Murdoch 
  • $50 million to expand Ronald McDonald House, $25 million for Cancer Council WA Lodge Accommodation services  
  • $5 million for adult eating disorder services  
  • $60 for improvements to Albany Hospital 

 

  • $275 million to provide 500 additional transitional care beds 
  • $13 million for high residential rehab beds for compulsory drug rehabilitation 
  • $100 million in four years Elective surgery guarantee  – everyone will get surgery within clinical timeframes – by getting it at no cost in the private system if cannot be accommodated in public system  
  • $20 000 payment to study and work as a nurse in WA – adding 2000 nurses to the workforce 
  • $33.5 million for eating disorder services  
  • $73.2 million to expand St John Urgent Care clinics 
  • $18 million for 60 000 episodes of care at St John Urgent Care  
  • $10 million training for high demand specialists 
  • Build Womens and Babies hospital in Nedlands 
  • $80 million to rebuild Royal Perth Hospital 
  • Two new wards at Joondalup Health Campus 
Improved access to health care in the community  
  • $26 million for youth mental health in the regions including $13.8 million for an Acute Care and Response team in Bunbury and $12.2 million to access virtual infant and child mental health services  
  • $9.9 million to transition a Kalgoorlie mental health program into a public subacute mental health facility 
  • $30.4 million health outcomes in Kimberley, including new clinic at Broome Regional Aboriginal Medical Service, a Derby Wellness centre with focus on drug and alcohol services, mental health support FDV services and aged care, detox facility in Broome and double renal dialysis capacity at Fitzroy Crossing. 
  • $12.4 million for a rebab centre in the Great Southern 
  • $16.3 million regional paramedics in Peel and South West 
  • PATS fuel rebate increase from 26c per km to 40c per km and expanded number of eligible services for PATS  – physio, speech, OT and dental  
  • $140 million aged care including loans for providers to deliver more beds and a program of Integrated Older Adult Care Hubs, Dementia Action Plan and an Aged Care Facility for Aboriginal people in Queens Park.  
  • $7.5 million for improved RFDS Services in the Mid West  
  • $21 million radiation oncology services in Geraldton  
  • $2 million renal dialysis unit in Geraldton  
  • $10.4 million for improved diabetes care 

 

 

  • $24 million Chemo in the Home program  
  • $19 million for five regional mobile dental units 
  • PATS increase to .40c per km (same) nightly allowance $150 per night 
  • $10 million on career paramedics in regions  
  • $25 million radiation oncology in Geraldton 
  • Build Tom Price Hospital  
  • $5.5 million for outpatient and ambulatory care services at Kalamunda hospital  
  • $3 million to expand dispensing of hospital only medications to community pharmacies  
  • $60 million for free post discharge GP visits 

 

Find out more:
WA Labour
WA Liberals
WA Greens
WA Nationals

They vote for you

Bronwyn Ife  |  Systemic Advocacy and Engagement Lead
Published on Feb 17, 2025  |  For media enquiries: 0488 701 839