HEALTH ALARM: AMA Queensland president Dr Mason
Stevenson has warned about the lack of medical facilities
in southeast Queensland's growth areas.
SOUTHEAST Queensland's premier growth corridor will buckle under the strain of insufficient health resources, the Australian Medical Association has warned.
After a two-day tour of the western corridor, AMAQ president Dr Mason Stevenson said plans to ramp up medical facilities through Springfield, Ipswich and Toowoomba were "grossly inadequate".
Yesterday, Ipswich Hospital was on capacity alert, and Dr Stevenson said waiting and treatment times were likely to soar as population in the corridor continued to grow.
Ipswich alone is predicted to be home to more than 435,000 people in the next 21 years, up from 170,000 today.
By 2031, Toowoomba will be home to 228,000 and Springfield 100,000 people.
Health Minister Paul Lucas said the Government had committed to a $128.7 million upgrade of the Ipswich Hospital.
He said he recognised the growth of the western corridor and had hired more than 300 extra clinical staff in the past five years.
But Dr Stevenson said planning, which offered an extra 90 beds and six short-stay beds, was insufficient.
Toowoomba has only been promised a $2 million upgrade for emergency facilities.
Dr Stevenson said the "cascading effect" of the strain on Toowoomba and Springfield medical infrastructure meant the system was destined to fail, with Ipswich and Brisbane resources set to be stretched beyond limits trying to cope.
He described Toowoomba as the "poorest cousin" of the hospital redevelopment program, with cancer care, trauma surgery and coronary care insufficient.
Dr Stevenson noted that Ipswich Hospital was "more substantive" than Toowoomba, but was on capacity alert on a weekly basis and couldn't handle Toowoomba's overflow. "We welcome the planned upgrades, but after walking the wards we've seen that they are not adequate," he said.
Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale said the region was crying out for more medical resources.
"If we're going to be smart we need to share the load," Cr Pisasale said.
Toowoomba Regional Council Mayor Peter Taylor said the centre's health facilities were under pressure because they serviced such a wide area.
"We service double our population because people in other centres see Toowoomba as their nearest city," he said.
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