Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
In less than a month. We know that health Scope,
the operator of Darwin Private Hospital, is ceasing maternity services,
leaving expectant mums in Limbo. We spoke earlier about this
with the Health Minister and the private packages which have
been announced, but reports in the Australian newspaper this week
have cast doubt on the future of health Scope's private
(00:23):
hospitals as a whole. And a man who's been following
this situation very closely is Ken Moffatt. Now. Ken is
from the Australian Independent Retirees NT branch.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Good morning to you, Ken, Good morning Gatie.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Ken I said earlier, you're almost like an assistant producer
to us on this topic because you have been following
this really closely and it's actually incredibly helpful letting us
know what is going on. But what's the situation as
you understand it at the.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Moment, Well, the situation is getting a little bit more
dire of each day goes by, as we hear that
now Brookfield have withdrawn from the whole process and handed
the Healthscope back to the lenders. Now that may stave
(01:12):
off some of the individual hospitals being caught in a
liquidation issue. But I don't know whether it goes overly well.
The more you read in the articles, the more you
can suggest that many of the private hospitals will close.
We're in a unique situation here in the Northern Territory
(01:33):
where we only have one private hospital. The thing that
I don't know, and I'm not sure whether our government
up here knows, is what is the financial health of
Darleen Private Hospital, Because if it's not particularly good, then
Darleen Private Hospital could be one of the vulnerable hospitals
to just simply closure as being just too hard. The
(01:57):
whole thing with Healthscope has been They've been badly managed
and their debt position is untenable. And why we as
a country allowed a Canadian fund to buy into our
(02:18):
private health system. Their motivation has to only be profit.
Their motivation is not about the health of Australians and
so I find it quite staggering that the sale to
Brookville was allowed in the first place. But we've got
this mess and we've now got to see whether or
not it impacts us because Darlan's in a unique position.
(02:39):
We only have one private hospital, so we are very
vulnerable up here, and I believe that the government needs
to be on the front foot as it relates to
making sure that they have plans in place if it
all goes pear shaped with Darwen Private Hospital can.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
I asked the Northern Territory Health Minister about this this
morning and he's sort of, you know, he didn't have
a great deal of detail when it came to these
further sort of stories that have been reported on in
The Australian in recent days. I did also speak to
the Australian Medical Associations in t branch president about this,
(03:20):
excuse me, yesterday, and he said that he's written to
the Health Minister federally and that he really believes that,
you know, there needs to be a further look into
and there needs to be some legislation potentially in the
future stopping foreign investors from actually investing into our private health.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
You're quite correct that the Federal Health Minister is coming
out today swinging saying that under no circumstances is are
the FEDS going to get involved in any kind of
bailout of the private health private hospital system.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Right my goodness.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So, I mean, you know that doesn't actually both particularly
well either. I don't know whether we're in trouble because
I don't know the financial state, but I would suspect
based upon some locals who've told me that it's probably
a bit of a basket case that we may be
down the bottom end of the profitability scale as it
(04:17):
relates to private hospitals. What I want to make sure
is that the Chief Minister and the Health Minister have
actually got skin in the game finding out what the
state of the financial situation is for the day and
private hospital and if it is powerless, and if it
is a problem, then they should be making some conversations
(04:39):
about what would happen if they decide to close the doors.
What options are there available now listening to the Treasure,
I didn't hear the interview in real time, but I
heard it again this morning, and thank you for bringing
that up with it. Look, I don't think there's money
in the till of the Northern Territory government, but somebody
(05:00):
needs to start putting something in place, because if it
goes pay shot, if the hospital actually closes, even if
it's only for a short period of time, there will
be a mass exits out of the territory. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Well, and also though you know, for those of us
that are here, that is set to stay. It's going
to mean that our Royal Darwin Hospital obviously faces more
pressure as a result of any of those patients having
to go across there. So however you look at it,
it's going to have an impact on all territorians. Ken,
I think the point you make is a really good one.
(05:32):
I actually think no one's expecting the Northern Territory government
has the funds to be able to bail out this
private operator. But I do think that there need to
be having a close look at this now before it
becomes an issue, so that there are potentially some plans
in place.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
Look talking to some people who've been involved in thet
of the hospital and health system here in the Northern Territory,
they have the belief that a consortium the doctors up
here might be willing to actually get involved in some
sort of buyout of the private hospital. But like, you've
got to be on the front foot doing this. You
can't wait until it's been put into liquidation and they
(06:09):
close the doors to actually see whether because then you're
going to get a mass exodus of people out of
the health system going into state to get jobs because
they just lost theirs. So it's about I don't know
whether that's a possibility, but like, we need to look
at what options there are or who might possibly take
over the hospital, And I don't know. I've got no
(06:29):
background in the health system, so I have no idea
who might want to be involved. But look, the government's
got to start asking some questions to see whether there's
a Plan B, because Plan A doesn't look real good
right now.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
No, Well, Ken, we did as I said, We did
put it to the Health Minister this morning. He didn't
seem to know a huge amount about it. I mean,
what is your message? What's your message for the government today?
Speaker 2 (06:54):
I think the government, between the Health Minister and the
Chief Minister, somebody needs to get on top of this.
It's not going to be easy to get hold of
the records of the financial stability of Royal Dam and
private hospital, but somebody's got to do it. We've got
to know whether we're at the bottom of the pile
or at the top of the pile. At the top
of the pile, go back to the pub. But if
we're at the bottom of the pile, somebody needs to
(07:16):
think about what would happen if because if we don't
get on the front foot and have something in place
by the time it goes pear shaped. It's going to
have catastrophic consequences up here in the territory. I cannot
even imagine. We must be losing credibility with the military
(07:36):
and the maternity side of things. This would be just
another nail in the coffin of anybody thinking of coming
to the Northern Territory. And as for the people who
are here, particularly the seniors, they're going to be wanting
to go somewhere where they've got access to the type
of private medical care that we've seen this sometimes need.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, well, Ken, look, we are due as under started
to have the Chief Minister on the show on Monday,
so we will make sure that we put that to hurt.
Thank you as always for your time and for sort
of making us aware of what's going on in this space.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Now. I'm sorry, I'm not going to be able to
help you for the next five weeks because I'm traveling internationally,
so I'll just have to wait until I get back
to see whether you've sorted.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
It or out for me what no voluntary assistant producer
role for the next five weeks.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
I'd love too, but you'll have to wait till the
end of June.
Speaker 1 (08:28):
I'm afraid well, considering you are retired, that's probably the
right thing to be doing, mate. So I very much
appreciate you getting in contact with us and making us
aware of this issue.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Not a problem. I just hope this gets resolved. Yeah,
but I mean, you know, we might have only been
here for like sixteen years, but you know, we've got
plans to want to say, a bit longer, and it's
going to be predicated on the fact that we've got
the sort of services that would allow us to stay
here spot on.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
Ken Moffort, always good to speak with you. Thank you
so much for your time this morning.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Okay, thanks Scodie, thank you
In less than a month. We know that health Scope,
the operator of Darwin Private Hospital, is ceasing maternity services,
leaving expectant mums in Limbo. We spoke earlier about this
with the Health Minister and the private packages which have
been announced, but reports in the Australian newspaper this week
have cast doubt on the future of health Scope's private
(00:23):
hospitals as a whole. And a man who's been following
this situation very closely is Ken Moffatt. Now. Ken is
from the Australian Independent Retirees NT branch.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Good morning to you, Ken, Good morning Gatie.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Ken I said earlier, you're almost like an assistant producer
to us on this topic because you have been following
this really closely and it's actually incredibly helpful letting us
know what is going on. But what's the situation as
you understand it at the.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Moment, Well, the situation is getting a little bit more
dire of each day goes by, as we hear that
now Brookfield have withdrawn from the whole process and handed
the Healthscope back to the lenders. Now that may stave
(01:12):
off some of the individual hospitals being caught in a
liquidation issue. But I don't know whether it goes overly well.
The more you read in the articles, the more you
can suggest that many of the private hospitals will close.
We're in a unique situation here in the Northern Territory
(01:33):
where we only have one private hospital. The thing that
I don't know, and I'm not sure whether our government
up here knows, is what is the financial health of
Darleen Private Hospital, Because if it's not particularly good, then
Darleen Private Hospital could be one of the vulnerable hospitals
to just simply closure as being just too hard. The
(01:57):
whole thing with Healthscope has been They've been badly managed
and their debt position is untenable. And why we as
a country allowed a Canadian fund to buy into our
(02:18):
private health system. Their motivation has to only be profit.
Their motivation is not about the health of Australians and
so I find it quite staggering that the sale to
Brookville was allowed in the first place. But we've got
this mess and we've now got to see whether or
not it impacts us because Darlan's in a unique position.
(02:39):
We only have one private hospital, so we are very
vulnerable up here, and I believe that the government needs
to be on the front foot as it relates to
making sure that they have plans in place if it
all goes pear shaped with Darwen Private Hospital can.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
I asked the Northern Territory Health Minister about this this
morning and he's sort of, you know, he didn't have
a great deal of detail when it came to these
further sort of stories that have been reported on in
The Australian in recent days. I did also speak to
the Australian Medical Associations in t branch president about this,
(03:20):
excuse me, yesterday, and he said that he's written to
the Health Minister federally and that he really believes that,
you know, there needs to be a further look into
and there needs to be some legislation potentially in the
future stopping foreign investors from actually investing into our private health.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
You're quite correct that the Federal Health Minister is coming
out today swinging saying that under no circumstances is are
the FEDS going to get involved in any kind of
bailout of the private health private hospital system.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Right my goodness.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So, I mean, you know that doesn't actually both particularly
well either. I don't know whether we're in trouble because
I don't know the financial state, but I would suspect
based upon some locals who've told me that it's probably
a bit of a basket case that we may be
down the bottom end of the profitability scale as it
(04:17):
relates to private hospitals. What I want to make sure
is that the Chief Minister and the Health Minister have
actually got skin in the game finding out what the
state of the financial situation is for the day and
private hospital and if it is powerless, and if it
is a problem, then they should be making some conversations
(04:39):
about what would happen if they decide to close the doors.
What options are there available now listening to the Treasure,
I didn't hear the interview in real time, but I
heard it again this morning, and thank you for bringing
that up with it. Look, I don't think there's money
in the till of the Northern Territory government, but somebody
(05:00):
needs to start putting something in place, because if it
goes pay shot, if the hospital actually closes, even if
it's only for a short period of time, there will
be a mass exits out of the territory. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Well, and also though you know, for those of us
that are here, that is set to stay. It's going
to mean that our Royal Darwin Hospital obviously faces more
pressure as a result of any of those patients having
to go across there. So however you look at it,
it's going to have an impact on all territorians. Ken,
I think the point you make is a really good one.
(05:32):
I actually think no one's expecting the Northern Territory government
has the funds to be able to bail out this
private operator. But I do think that there need to
be having a close look at this now before it
becomes an issue, so that there are potentially some plans
in place.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
Look talking to some people who've been involved in thet
of the hospital and health system here in the Northern Territory,
they have the belief that a consortium the doctors up
here might be willing to actually get involved in some
sort of buyout of the private hospital. But like, you've
got to be on the front foot doing this. You
can't wait until it's been put into liquidation and they
(06:09):
close the doors to actually see whether because then you're
going to get a mass exodus of people out of
the health system going into state to get jobs because
they just lost theirs. So it's about I don't know
whether that's a possibility, but like, we need to look
at what options there are or who might possibly take
over the hospital, And I don't know. I've got no
(06:29):
background in the health system, so I have no idea
who might want to be involved. But look, the government's
got to start asking some questions to see whether there's
a Plan B, because Plan A doesn't look real good
right now.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
No, Well, Ken, we did as I said, We did
put it to the Health Minister this morning. He didn't
seem to know a huge amount about it. I mean,
what is your message? What's your message for the government today?
Speaker 2 (06:54):
I think the government, between the Health Minister and the
Chief Minister, somebody needs to get on top of this.
It's not going to be easy to get hold of
the records of the financial stability of Royal Dam and
private hospital, but somebody's got to do it. We've got
to know whether we're at the bottom of the pile
or at the top of the pile. At the top
of the pile, go back to the pub. But if
we're at the bottom of the pile, somebody needs to
(07:16):
think about what would happen if because if we don't
get on the front foot and have something in place
by the time it goes pear shaped. It's going to
have catastrophic consequences up here in the territory. I cannot
even imagine. We must be losing credibility with the military
(07:36):
and the maternity side of things. This would be just
another nail in the coffin of anybody thinking of coming
to the Northern Territory. And as for the people who
are here, particularly the seniors, they're going to be wanting
to go somewhere where they've got access to the type
of private medical care that we've seen this sometimes need.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, well, Ken, look, we are due as under started
to have the Chief Minister on the show on Monday,
so we will make sure that we put that to hurt.
Thank you as always for your time and for sort
of making us aware of what's going on in this space.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Now. I'm sorry, I'm not going to be able to
help you for the next five weeks because I'm traveling internationally,
so I'll just have to wait until I get back
to see whether you've sorted.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
It or out for me what no voluntary assistant producer
role for the next five weeks.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
I'd love too, but you'll have to wait till the
end of June.
Speaker 1 (08:28):
I'm afraid well, considering you are retired, that's probably the
right thing to be doing, mate. So I very much
appreciate you getting in contact with us and making us
aware of this issue.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Not a problem. I just hope this gets resolved. Yeah,
but I mean, you know, we might have only been
here for like sixteen years, but you know, we've got
plans to want to say, a bit longer, and it's
going to be predicated on the fact that we've got
the sort of services that would allow us to stay
here spot on.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
Ken Moffort, always good to speak with you. Thank you
so much for your time this morning.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Okay, thanks Scodie, thank you
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