FRANK Baker is still determined to see a managed renal unit situated in Young.
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Mr Baker, whose late wife Helen was a renal patient, stood before Young Shire Council last week saying he felt the best approach would be through a submission to NSW Health.
“We have to make our application a needs-based application rather than a submission based on emotion,” he said.
“Decision making in health is made by the managerial staff of the health department based on the needs of the community in delivery of health, the cost of delivery and the practical implementation of such.
“Each dollar spent in health has to weigh up to deliver the best statewide system,” Mr Baker said.
He has suggested firstly presenting Young’s case to the Murrumbidgee Area Health manager, highlighting the numbers of patients presently travelling long distances for treatment and the viability of a unit in Young to meet this much-needed service.
“We then move one step further up the chain and meeting with the manager of the NSW Health unit that decides it is viable to establish this service,” he said, “again the submission has to be accurate, convincing and not purely emotional.”
Mr Baker said he understood the granting of a unit to Cowra was based on logistics, need, distance and the availability of funds to achieve the best outcome at the time.
“In the draft planning of the Murrumbidgee Area Health, Young was at the top of the list for a satellite unit managed by Wagga but in the overall picture of NSW it does not guarantee that we get the unit, it is part of the overall consideration with other area health units,” he said.
Mr Baker said when Young first started to make a move for a satellite unit 13 years ago, the town had seven patients travelling to Canberra three times a week.
He said in 2010 the estimate was that in 2016, 14 local patients would require dialysis.
“We now have only two to three travelling to Canberra,” he said.
Despite this he says Young people should coordinate their efforts to achieve the aim of having a satellite renal unit.
In response, Young’s general manager Peter Vlatko said the council was not looking to MLHD staff.
“They’ve done everything they can,” he said.
“The decision is not up to them, it is a political decision and, to that end, we have taken action,” he said, confirming Young’s mayor John Walker had requested a meeting with NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner.
A signed petition by locals protesting the loss of the satellite renal unit will be presented at parliament tomorrow by MLC Mick Veitch,
Mr Veitch told The Witness last week the health minister is required to respond in writing to that petition.
