Ramsay’s Peel Health Campus contract to be extended

Mr Day said the five-year contract extension would start in mid-2018.

“Peel Health Campus is a vital part of the hospital network and provides essential health services in one of our most dynamic regions,” he said.

“I am confident Ramsay Health Care will continue to provide high-quality services to the Peel community over the extended term of the contract, at a price which represents value-for-money to the state.

“The competitive contract pricing will bring Peel more in line with recent Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), which are delivering significant savings.

“For instance, the St John of God Midland Public Hospital PPP will save taxpayers an estimated $1.3 billion during its initial 20-year contract.

“As with any PPP, there will be ongoing monitoring at Peel to ensure all care and quality obligations under the contract are met.”

Mr Day said regular service reviews would address the changing health care needs of the Peel community.

“The contract extension also gives us the opportunity to review and finalise clinical service planning based on the region’s projected long-term health care requirements,” he said.

Mandurah MP David Templeman was positive about the announcement, but said the hospital would need more resources to deal with increasing demand for health services in the region.

“I’m comfortable that the extension has been granted but I would now like to see a concerted effort to fast-track a badly needed extension to the hospital,” he said.

“We are badly in need of more beds and the hospital requires a substantial investment to cater for current and future needs.”

Ramsay Health Care won the contract in 2013 from Health Solutions WA after the hospital was embroiled in a controversy involving incentive payments for doctors, prompting a parliamentary inquiry.