Calls for priority access as Victoria’s PET scanner program faces major setbacks
Labor’s election promise to deliver new specialist scanners to eight Victoria hospitals is $25.7 million over budget and four years late.
The failure of the app has led to calls to prioritize critical technology for regional and rural areas.
Ahead of the 2022 state election, Labor has pledged $44 million to buy new Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanners at eight hospitals, including four in regional Victoria.
The devices can scan for cellular changes and be used to detect cancers, heart disease and other conditions earlier than other machines.
But the latest state budget revealed that this program will now cost $69.6 million as a result of unspecified “project cost increases.”
In previous budgets, it was predicted that the project would be completed by the end of this month. It is now expected to be completed by June 2030.
Northern Hospital has been provided with a scanner and Goulburn Valley Health received confirmation this year that they will receive funding to have their new scanners up and running by 2027.
However, Warrnambool Base Hospital, Ballarat Base Hospital, Sunshine Hospital, Frankston Hospital, Werribee Mercy Hospital and Wangaratta Base Hospital are still pending.
Regional Liberal MPs Roma Britnell and Bev McArthur warned Warrnambool patients would have to travel to Geelong and Melbourne for these scans due to the delay.
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said Labor had failed to deliver on its election promise.
“This unfulfilled promise of the PET scanner means worse health outcomes for Victorians across the state and is yet another real-world consequence of a decade of Labor fiscal mismanagement,” he said.
“Only my Liberal and National team has a plan to clean up the books and invest in the essential services Victorians need and deserve, including our health system.”
A Victorian government spokesperson said: “The installation of PET scanners in our hospitals is complex and requires extensive planning to minimize disruption to patients and staff.
“The delivery of some of these machines is in line with the upgrades or redevelopments of major hospitals, some of which are currently under construction.”
Australian Medical Association Victoria president Dr. Simon Judkins said diagnostic machines were important to growing communities and vital in regional and rural Victoria.
“It’s hard enough for people in regional and rural areas to access oncology care, but traveling to get these vital scans is such a burden. Travel costs so much money, it’s disruptive to the family.”
Judkins said the state government should consider prioritizing scanners in those areas and focus on metropolitan services once the areas are covered.
“We seem to be flooding metro areas with new technology, and regional rural areas seem to be a close second,” he said.
“This is about equity and access for regional rural areas and again we seem to be taking a backseat.”
PET scanner funding announced for Goulburn Valley Health in May included $7.1 million to support operation of the machine from 2027.
At the time, CEO Matt Sharp said the device would have a significant impact on people in the region.
“This means local families will be able to access advanced diagnostics without having to travel long distance, helping them stay connected to their support networks and communities when they need it most,” he said.
Concerns had previously been raised that there were not enough staff to operate the machines being rolled out across the state. in 2022 Age Highlighted record demand and workforce shortage for radiologists, radiographers and medical imaging technologists and nurses had banded together to extend wait times for nearly every type of screening.
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