QNU Press Release - December 2004

13 December 2004

Logan Private Hospital to close
Nurses to meet this afternoon to discuss implications
What happens to the building now?

Details
QNU Logan Hospital members to meet
Date: Monday 13 December 2004
Time: 2:00pm
Venue: Logan Private Hospital

Queensland Nurses' Union (QNU) members at Logan Private Hospital will meet at 2:00pm today, Monday 13 December, to discuss the implications of the decition to permanently close the facility at Christmas.

Logan Private Hospital is a collocated hospital adjoining the Logan Public Hospital at Meadowbank.  It was established about five years ago under a "commercial-in-confidence" collocation arrangement with the Queensland Government.  It is currently owned by Affinity Health and employs 22 permanent and 16 casual nurses.

Affinity Health advised the QNU late last week of its intention to close the hospital in the next few weeks, because it "has been operating at a loss since it was first opened".

QNU secretary, Gay Hawksworth, said today's meeting will discuss the rights of the nurses in this situation and any alternative employment options being put forward by Affinity, which owns another five hospitals in south-east Queensland.

"The QNU has always been opposed to the collocation of private hospitals with public facilities.  We are particularly opposed to the secret nature of the contracts that exist between the private operator and the State Government.  This secrecy means the community has no knowledge of what happens when deals such as this with the private sector fall over," Ms Hawksworth said.

"We recently saw Queensland Health forced to bring forward its takeover of Robina Hospital, because the private operator could not continue running it.  What happens in the case of failed collocations?

"For example, what now happens to the building being vacated by Affinity?  Does it become part of Logan Public Hospital?  What financial obligations, if any, are imposed on the taxpayer?

"It is time questions such as this were answered, not just in this case, but in the case of every deal done between Queensland Health and the private sector," Ms Hawksworth said.