Greg McFarlane, Sydney
The battle between the local community and Northern Sydney Health over future hospital services in Sydney's northern beach suburbs is heating up, following NSW health minister Morris Iemma's announcement on September 6 that the Mona Vale and Manly hospital land will be sold to property developers.
Alex McTaggart, a long-time supporter of the Save Mona Vale Hospital Committee, told Green Left Weekly that economic rationalism and the "centralised thinking of the 1970s" is behind the health department's push for a single mega-hospital in the area. He said that the two existing hospitals should be upgraded and "networked", where waiting lists would be significantly reduced by the two hospitals cooperating.
The recent two-hospitals-one-network upgrading at Blacktown/Mount Druitt was very successful and is a model that can be used in the northern beaches.
The history of the issue is long. Over several years, three community "consultations" were carried out. During these consultations, Northern Sydney Health did its best to get its way, by stacking forums and withholding information under the guise of confidentiality. Each time, the wishes of the local people to maintain two hospitals in the area won out against these flawed processes.
In 2002, after strong community opposition against a centralised hospital, an agreement was finally signed off for a two-hospital networked solution.
In 2003, after years of outrageous behaviour by the pro-development majority faction, Warringah Council was sacked by the government and replaced by an administrator, Dick Persson. He had previously been the CEO of the Central Sydney Area Health Service and in 2004 he suddenly announced that he had offered the Dee Why Civic Centre to the health department as a new hospital site. The site currently contains the council chambers, a library in an architecturally award-winning building and a valuable area of green open space and wildlife in the midst a densely populated area.
Persson made this offer without any community consultation, without any reports and without any mandate.
On September 7, the NSW health minister announced plans to sell off publicly owned hospital land, and to expand private-sector contracts within hospitals. This is sure to increase community anger.
The health department is using divide and conquer techniques by trying to pit the residents in the north and south of the area against each other. However the groups have come together and are organising a rally under the banner "Say no to Dee Why hospital". The rally will be at 11am on September 18, in front of the library at the Dee Why Civic Centre.
[Greg McFarlane is a member of the Sydney northern suburbs ("northside") branch of the Socialist Alliance, which is organising a contingent to the September 18 protest.]
From Green Left Weekly, September 15, 2004.
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