Cape and Torres health services to merge

The Cape York and Torres Strait–Northern Peninsula Hospital and Health Services will merge to improve health service delivery for residents in the far north.

Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said the Torres Strait had been without a health board for some time and this process would result in stronger governance, better representation and ultimately, improved patient services.

“Our Government is committed to revitalising front line services and I will be asking Cape York Hospital and Health Service Board Chair Bob McCarthy to develop a plan as to how to move forward with this merge,” Mr Springborg said.

“As part of this process, extensive consultation will need to be undertaken and I feel Mr McCarthy is best placed to carry out the task.”

Mr Springborg said due to their small size, individually, the two health services lack the critical mass for efficient, stand-alone administration.

“Combining the two health services will result in a single, efficient administrative structure, reduce unnecessary duplication and allow the health service to put more focus on delivering quality health care,’ he said.

“The combined entity will have one executive management team and a single board representing the whole region.

“The new Board will have an equal spread of members from the Cape York and the Torres Strait and Northern Peninsula communities.”

Mr Springborg said the two health services were no strangers to working together and were a single entity as the Peninsula and Torres Strait Regional Health Authority in the 1990s.

“They already cooperate with each other and with the Cairns and Hinterland HHS on a number of matters, including the delivery of specialist outreach clinical services,” he said.

Under the current health reforms, the new combined health service will enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and remote communities in Cape York to have a greater voice, a greater scale of operation and more control of their health services.

Mr Springborg said the timeline for achieving a merge was flexible but he hoped the new structure could be in place by mid-2014.

[ENDS] 4 December 2013

Media contact: Clare Mildren 0417 255 284