Mater Hospital staff rally against privatisation

Mater Hospital staff rally against privatisation

By Alison Dellit

NEWCASTLE — On January 4, more than 400 Staff walked off the job and rallied in opposition to plans to privatise the Mater Hospital.

The protest was part of a "public awareness campaign" organised by health unions and the Newcastle Trades Hall Council which is designed to force the state Labor government to concede increased funds for the cash-strapped hospital. The Mater Hospital is completely publicly funded through a partnership with the Hunter Area Health Service, but its funds have been gradually reduced over the last five years, leaving it in a desperate state.

The hospital is one of just three remaining hospitals in Newcastle. It contains the only cancer unit in the Hunter region. Many of the hospital's patients come from the economically devastated mining areas around Newcastle, and some patients travel up to an hour and a half every week to access its services.

From GLW issue 391