Hospital mortality rates - not always good news for those living in rural and regional NSW

Bureau of Health Information (December 2013), 30-day mortality following hospitalisation, five clinical conditions, NSW, July 2009 – June 2012: Acute myocardial infarction, ischaemic stroke, haemorrhagic stroke, pneumonia and hip fracture surgery:

Acute myocardial infarction - There were 91 hospitals (90%) with mortality no different to expected. Three hospitals (Royal Prince Alfred, Royal North Shore, Prince of Wales), had lower than expected mortality and seven hospitals (Milton and Ulladulla, Cessnock, Bowral, Tamworth, Hornsby, St George, and one not reportable*) had higher than expected mortality.

For ischaemic stroke - There were 57 hospitals (80%) with mortality no different from expected. Four hospitals (Concord, Prince of Wales, Belmont, and Manly) had lower than expected mortality and ten hospitals (Moruya, Tamworth, Dubbo, Lismore, Nepean, Coffs Harbour, Westmead, Royal Prince Alfred, John Hunter, and one not reportable*) had higher than expected mortality.

Haemorrhagic stroke - There were 82 hospitals (94%) within the expected range of results. Two hospitals (Fairfield, and one not reportable*) had lower than expected mortality and three hospitals (Port Macquarie, John Hunter, and one not reportable*) had higher than expected mortality.

Pneumonia - There were 126 hospitals (89%) within the expected range. Seven hospitals (Canterbury, John Hunter, Bankstown, St Vincent’s, Maitland, Shellharbour, one not reportable) had lower than expected mortality and nine hospitals (Inverell, Manning, Tamworth, Blacktown, Wyong and four not reportable*) had higher than expected mortality.

Hip fracture surgery - Results for 33 hospitals (87%) were within the expected range of mortality. One hospital (St Vincent’s) had lower than expected mortality and four hospitals (Tamworth, Orange, Gosford, and Coffs Harbour) had higher than expected mortality.

Click on images to enlarge

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL BROADBAND NETWORK: Keeping copper wire in ground on coastal flood plains

The Abbott Government intends that the last section of the National Broadband Network which enters an Internet users premises will remain the original copper wire installed by Telstra – unless the user is rich enough to pay for the laying of optic fibre between the street node box and their residence/business.

Giving evidence before the Senate Select Committee on the National Broadband Network last week, NBN Chairman and Acting CEO Dr Ziggy Switkowski on the subject of fault levels on Telstra’s copper wire-based telecommunications system:

I am certainly familiar with the issue in the sense that long periods of drought tend to be associated with lower fault levels than seasons that are very, very wet. The difference might be two or three per cent out of a 10 per cent to 15 per cent base. I am just guessing here or trying to remember.......

Northern Rivers communities will be alarmed at this statement, given the number of floods and heavy rain periods the region experiences. 

Because what Dr. Switkowski statement indicates is that there is little hope that the Abbott broadband scheme will see any improvement in the rate of server dropouts or in upload/download speeds for Internet users on the NSW North Coast.

Abbott Government debt

On 4 December 2013 Australian Treasurer Joe Hockey announced that; The Government has today agreed to the Australian Greens’ proposal to repeal the statutory debt limit and enhance transparency around government debt reporting. 

On 4 December Abbott Government borrowings were averaging in excess of $203 million a day.

Now the fiscal brakes have been removed from Hockey's little red treasury wagon, I wonder how much further into debt he will drive the Commonwealth.

The Abbott 'Best Possible Christmas Present' That Isn't

http://youtu.be/3tiEUgKMSo4

best possible Christmas present for the Australian people

[Tony Abbott, December 2013]

Even if the Australian Senate voted to repeal the former Labor Government’s Clean Energy legislation before it goes into recess at the end of the 12 December 2013 sitting day, power bills will probably not see any decrease before late-2014 at the earliest as the Abbot Government does not intend to abolish the carbon price levy until 1 June that year.

By the Abbott Government’s own admission the carbon price levy only adds $9 to every $100 dollars of the average household’s energy bills so each household would be 'saving' a monumental $1.50 a day after May next year. By comparison state government-owned network poles and wires charges add $51 to every $100 dollars of the average bill and that part of the bill is not going away in the foreseeable future.

In addition, the Abbott Government has no date set to reduce the renewable energy tariff component of the power bill which also adds to the cost of power to the home or business, nor is it planning to abolish the most lucrative arm of the so-called ‘carbon tax’ – the levy paid by the off-shore oil and gas industry.

The Abbott Government also has no power to set electricity or gas retail prices. That is the purview of states and territories regulators and, in part, the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). In NSW the state regulator is the Independent Pricing And Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) and its current prices are set until June 2014.

As the morning of 1 July 2014 dawns across the NSW Northern Rivers, can you be certain that your power bill will fall sometime in the next two years or will you find that it continues to rise and rise?

Either way, Santa Abbott is not reducing your power bill this Christmas.

Did Abbott & Pyne break the 10 Day Rule?

The Financial Review reported on 30 October 2013:

Tony Abbott has instructed his ministers to complete their submissions to ­cabinet 10 days before they are scheduled for discussion as he seeks to assure business and others that the days of ad hoc policymaking are over.

In an interview with The Australian Financial Review, the Prime Minister said he had re-instituted the “10-day rule” to ensure that by the time a ­decision was announced, it had been thoroughly workshopped by the department and other relevant ministers, minimising the potential for poor policy and unintended consequences.

“One of the object lessons of the last six years has been the peril that ­government created for itself, and the chaos that it risked creating for our country, when ordinary decision-making processes are abandoned and when the tried and tested process of cabinet and government are neglected in favour of spur of the moment opportunism,” he said.

Mr Abbott said the rule would be applied in every situation except in cases of national emergency when a quick decision was needed....

Well that seems clear cut.

So how does the quickly shifting federal policy on education funding stack up against this need to have decisions thoroughly workshopped by the department and other relevant ministers before they are announced?

There was barely a day between some of the foreshadowed or announced policy back flips by Prime Minister Abbott and Education Minister Pyne over the last eight or nine days.

The Abbott Government does not present as mature and stable - it appears inadequate and in panic mode.

A new look for the Member for Cowper

Luke Hartsuyker MP for Cowper as he appears on the Australian Parliament's website.

The images below show the new, ever-so-cool MP for Cowper when he spoke in the House of Representatives on Tuesday 3rd December. Who is the MP's new hair dresser?