Call to Action on Health
New DiT Co-Chair focused on making a difference
Dr Michael Page
AMA (WA) President
The Australian Medical Association (WA) presents our State Election Priorities as a blueprint for addressing the most pressing healthcare challenges facing WA. As the voice of the medical profession, we advocate for policies that will improve health outcomes, ensure equitable access to care, and strengthen the overall healthcare system for future generations. We have highlighted the most urgent issues in WA’s health system and outlined clear, actionable solutions that the next State Government must adopt to support the wellbeing of Western Australians.
WA’s health system is under immense strain. Over the past decade, we have seen a decline in hospital bed capacity relative to population growth, leading to increased pressure on emergency departments, ambulance ramping, and overcrowding. In December 2024 alone, ambulances spent a total of 4,580 hours ramped — an alarming 1,300-hour increase from the same period in 2023 and double the time recorded in 2019. This crisis must be addressed through targeted investment in public hospital capacity, improved outpatient care, and a commitment to long-term health system reform.
The medical workforce required to deliver appropriate healthcare will have to be addressed. WA has long struggled with doctor shortages, particularly in rural and regional areas. The State urgently needs at least 200 additional general practitioners to meet growing demand. In some rural and remote areas, local governments have had to subsidise doctors’ salaries to ensure basic healthcare access for their communities. This is an unsustainable approach, and the next government must implement comprehensive workforce planning to recruit, train and retain doctors where they are needed most.
Training and education for doctors must be expanded, ensuring that medical students and junior doctors receive training in the locations and specialties where they will ultimately work. Increasing medical school placements, investing in structured training pathways for regional and rural doctors, and ensuring competitive remuneration will be key to maintaining a skilled and sustainable medical workforce. Administrative burdens also remain a challenge, with doctors spending up to 15% of their working hours on non-clinical tasks. Investment in better technological and administrative support can improve efficiency, allowing doctors to focus on patient care rather than paperwork.
The mental health system is yet another area in urgent need of further reform. Mental health issues affect one in five Australians every year, yet services remain underfunded and overwhelmed. The demand for mental health services has grown by 18% since 2013, but the psychiatric workforce has not expanded to meet this need. Currently, only 404 psychiatrists serve the entire State, leading to long wait times and inadequate access to care. Immediate action is required to increase the number of mental health beds to over 900, expand community mental health services, and develop new service models for conditions like ADHD, addiction medicine and psychiatric care.
Primary healthcare, particularly general practice, is the foundation of a well-functioning health system. GPs play a vital role in preventing hospital readmissions, managing chronic disease, and supporting the ageing population. However, GPs face increasing financial pressure, making it difficult to provide the time-intensive care that complex cases require. The next government must increase funding for longer GP consultations, improve incentives for in-person, after-hours, and telehealth support in aged-care facilities, and invest in programs that ensure patients receive timely follow-up care after hospital discharge.
The challenges facing rural and remote healthcare are unique and require targeted policy responses. Access to high-quality care in these areas is often limited due to geographic isolation, workforce shortages, and inadequate infrastructure. Incentives for rural doctors, expanded training opportunities, and greater investment in telehealth services will be crucial to improving healthcare access outside the metropolitan area. The Rural Generalist Pathway must also be strengthened, providing doctors with a structured career path that supports their ability to deliver care in diverse and challenging settings.
Beyond workforce and service delivery, infrastructure investment is essential to modernising WA’s health system. Many of WA’s hospitals operate in ageing and outdated facilities that no longer meet the needs of patients or staff. While new hospitals have been built, others – such as Royal Perth Hospital and Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital – require urgent upgrades. The government must also invest in new medical equipment, IT systems, and digital health infrastructure to enhance service delivery, improve efficiency, and support future innovations in patient care. Strategic planning for short, medium and long-term infrastructure needs is required to ensure WA’s healthcare system is prepared for future challenges.
Public health initiatives are another critical component of a healthy society. Prevention is always better than cure, and government investment in education and prevention programs can reduce the burden of chronic disease, addiction and injury. Rising rates of vaping, gambling, and alcohol consumption are contributing to significant public health issues, with alcohol-related harm alone costing WA billions each year. Evidence-based interventions – such as minimum floor pricing for alcohol, stronger regulation of online alcohol sales, and investment in smoking and vaping cessation programs – are necessary to protect public health and reduce long-term healthcare costs.
Another pressing public health issue is injury prevention. Road trauma, e-scooter accidents and workplace injuries – particularly in WA’s mining and agricultural sectors – continue to cause preventable harm. Agriculture remains one of the most dangerous industries in Australia, with 31 worker fatalities recorded in 2021 alone. Similarly, 18 fatalities occurred on mine sites between 2013 and 2022. The government must take a stronger stance on workplace safety regulations, road safety initiatives, and injury prevention strategies to protect Western Australians at work and in their communities.
Family and domestic violence is another area where health services play a crucial role. The AMA (WA) strongly supports expanding funding and regional access for the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC), ensuring that survivors of violence have timely access to medical and psychological support. Healthcare professionals are often the first point of contact for individuals experiencing domestic violence, and adequate training, resources and funding are essential for them to provide appropriate care and referrals.
Finally, climate health and environmental impacts must be a priority in healthcare policy. Climate change has direct and indirect consequences for public health, from heat-related illnesses to the spread of infectious diseases. The Climate Health WA Inquiry has provided clear recommendations on how to mitigate these risks, and the next government must commit to their implementation to protect communities and the healthcare system from future environmental health threats.
The AMA (WA) believes that the next State Government must take decisive action to secure the future of healthcare in WA. We have presented evidence-based solutions that will address key challenges, from increasing hospital bed capacity and expanding mental health services, to investing in the medical workforce and improving rural healthcare access.
We call on policymakers to commit to these priorities, ensuring that WA’s health system remains strong, accessible and sustainable for all. Healthcare professionals across the State are ready to work alongside government to implement these reforms – but action must be taken now to build a healthier future for WA.
Public Hospitals
To be effective, the hospital system needs to have the right proportion of hospital beds to population. Historically, and nationally, this has been 250 beds per 100,000 people living in WA. Over the last decade the proportion of hospital beds in WA has steadily decreased. This has been a contributing factor to increased ramping in our hospitals. In December 2024 ambulances spent a total of 4,580 hours ramped, an increase of 1,300 hours when compared to the same time in 2023, double what it was in 2019, and 10 times what it was in 2015.
To counteract this situation, and with a population estimated to be 3.3 million people by 2028, a total of 8,337 beds will be needed. This cannot be delivered overnight, but the next State Government needs to commit to increasing the proportion of hospital beds to the national average and historical levels.
Outpatient clinics both prevent hospital admissions through early intervention and reduce readmission rates for patients’ post-hospital stay. This is particularly acute for services such as Paediatrics, where the wait times can be up to three years for a child to be seen in the public system.
These outpatient clinics need to be linked to general practices, so patients who need to be referred into the hospital can be provided with appropriate access. Similarly, patients should be supported by community-based services where they can be managed, and receive the support they need for
rehabilitation, chronic disease management, and mental health services.
To achieve better health outcomes for Western Australians, we need to address the areas of care most in need of extra bed capacity. Geriatric services and mental health are among the largest areas of demand for hospital beds. Targeting increased beds in these areas will be vital to ensuring the success of the health system.
WA public hospitals operate at a deficit every year. This is poor fiscal management, demonstrating the WA Government underestimating the demand for health services. Pressure on hospital management to meet these unreasonable budgets will only lower the quality of healthcare in our State. The hospital budget should be informed by clinicians who are managing the demand and increased pressure of patient services.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Hospitals and Funding
02: Outpatient clinics and connected care
Workforce
The medical workforce is central to the ongoing delivery of a world-class healthcare system. This workforce requires planning, support and development to meet the changing needs of the population. As the WA health system operates across primary to tertiary services, as well as the private and public systems, the approach to workforce development should be considered across these areas individually and as a system holistically. WA has had to step up its efforts to recruit more doctors, as relying on local medical graduates is insufficient now and in the longer term. We are short of rural doctors and GPs, needing at least 200 new GPs across the State. The situation is so dire that in some areas Local Governments are supplementing doctors’ wages, just so the community can receive medical help.
However, the issue is not confined to WA. Our pay and conditions need to be competitive, so doctors are encouraged to stay, and high-quality doctors are attracted to this State. In fact, more should be done to encourage doctors to go to hard-to-recruit areas such as Kalgoorlie, the Pilbara and the Wheatbelt.
The training of junior doctors needs to take place in all of the areas where they will practise, from metropolitan Perth to remote communities. Training doctors across the State and across the range of health services that are offered in WA will support doctors who wish to work rurally and regionally. In the longer term, it will also increase the service levels offered across the system, reducing the need for patients to travel for treatment, and for doctors to disrupt their training through continual movement. The training that can be offered in regional areas needs to be consistent and secure, so that medical students and junior doctors can plan their careers, and so that communities can benefit from greater local knowledge and continuity of care from the medical workforce.
Medical staff are taken away from patient care by administrative and clerical issues, which can take up as much as 15% of their work time. New technologies can support the delivery of care from the ward to the treatment room, which will allow doctors to see more patients while maintaining high levels of care.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Training and Education
02: Support Doctors in Training
03: Work Conditions
Mental Health
The increasing demand for mental healthcare cannot be met by the current number of medical staff working in this field. Every year 20% of the population will experience an episode of poor mental health. The increasing population without corresponding increases in the capacity of the system means that we are now supporting proportionally fewer people, with increasing wait times for those who need these services. This can be seen in the 18% increase in demand for services since 2013, and only 404 psychiatrists trying to meet that need. In fact, WA has the lowest number
of psychiatrists per head of population in Australia.
There needs to be an increase in the psychiatric workforce to support this increase; an increase in the number of mental health inpatient beds to over 900; an increase in community and out-patient facilities; and a whole-of-government approach to mental health and suicide prevention. This will include support and services for the workforce so that they can continue to serve the community. Recent changes in WA which allow interstate referrals, and changes to prescribing regulations will go some way to addressing these issues – but more will need to be done to address the increased demand on mental healthcare workers.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Psychiatry Workforce
02: Mental Health Capacity and Crisis Care
03: Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
General Practice
Amongst its many roles, general practice plays a vital role in keeping patients from hospital re-admissions after discharge. The role of GPs as specialists, working on the front line of the health system, and supporting the broader community and the hospital system, means that they engage with all levels of the health system positively, contributing to both better outcomes for patients, and reducing unnecessary cost to the system.
The health system is complex, and becomes increasingly so as we age. Navigating this system is difficult, and people require assistance if they are to have both a positive ageing journey and remain healthier for longer. GPs frequently have longstanding relationships with their patients and can provide reassurance, as well as medical care.
While the support and care that GPs provide for their patients is clear to see, they can also support their medical colleagues and other parts of the system. In particular, GPs can support the aged-care system, provide clinics for other specialists to use, and provide overall improvement to the experience of patients. This is true wherever the GP is working, in the metropolitan area or rurally. This potential needs to be unlocked through better and targeted interventions by the State and Federal Governments. This can be achieved through better integration of health hubs and local clinics with GP services that will support the community. Bulk-billing rates continue to drop because doctors cannot rely on Medicare rebates to sustain their practice. More needs to be done to ensure clinics are viable and that patients’ out-of-pocket costs are reduced.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Connected and Accessible Care
02: Sustainability of General Practice
Rural Health
Healthcare provision in rural and regional WA continues to face challenges, but these challenges are not insurmountable. Rural medicine offers a range of professional and personal benefits for doctors in all stages of their careers. It is, however, difficult for them to discover this when the access to training opportunities and placements are limited in rural areas. These opportunities are both limited in the number of training places, and attractiveness to a lot of medical staff. The attractiveness of the training opportunity is directly linked to their broader needs such as the costs of housing and transport, as well as the duration of the training contract itself.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Rural Workforce and Capacity Building
Private Health
Private Health and Private Hospitals play a key role in the WA health system. While many policy levers lie with the Commonwealth Government, the WA State Government can advocate to the Federal Government on the much-needed and well-discussed issues that they control – such as Medicare funding, private health insurance reform, and workforce training.
As a State, we have one of the highest levels of private health insurance in the country, and it is important to the State system that this be maintained. Private health cover removes demand from the public system, while at the same time providing income to the public system when those facilities are being used for private patients. It is important then, for this to be a comprehensive system, with services offered across the State and across the broad spectrum of health services. It is critical that specialist medical practices remain viable to practise in the community and private hospitals.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Government’s Role
Assets and Infrastructure
A highly trained and experienced workforce needs facilities and systems around them to be able to deliver world-class healthcare. This is why there needs to be a focus on assets and infrastructure over the next term of Government. The existing buildings that are used in the health system vary from the very new (Fiona Stanley Hospital) to the very old (Royal Perth Hospital). While the age of the building is a factor in the services that can be offered there, it is not the only determining factor.
Health assets need to be continually maintained and upgraded if they are to remain relevant and appropriate for ongoing use. This is not, however, only a question of bricks and mortar. The plant, machinery and processes that are being used every day in our hospitals also need to be maintained, upgraded or updated. This will support doctor training as well as patient outcomes. Planning for this system needs to consider the short to medium-term changes that will be needed (1-5 years), as well as the long and very long-term changes (10-50+ years).
The co-location of tertiary and quaternary adult, paediatric, obstetric and neonatal hospitals is a fundamental principle that must underpin all planning decisions for the Women and Babies Hospital.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Ensure tri-location at QEII and Murdoch sites
02: Hospitals and IT systems
03: Access
Public Health
The AMA (WA) knows the importance of addressing public health concerns, including areas as diverse as environmental impacts, and the influence of family and domestic violence. Comprehensive strategies are needed to tackle these issues through public education and prevention initiatives. Addressing environmental health concerns is crucial for creating healthier communities and improving overall population health.
Addiction, in all its forms, has a significant impact on the health of Western Australians. These addictions can affect the broader community as well as the addicted person, including increasing the likelihood of family and domestic violence, criminality and destitution. Increasing rates of vaping (six-fold increase in youth aged 14-17 and four-fold increase in youth aged 18-24), gambling ($1.4 million lost in 2020), and alcohol consumption (225.4 million litres consumed in 2023 as compared to 208.6 million litres in 2020) continue to have a negative impact on the State.
Injury prevention is critical in WA, with road trauma, e-ridables, mine sites and farms posing significant risks. Stronger measures are needed to reduce road trauma through safer infrastructure, speed limit enforcement, and education campaigns. The rise of e-ridables, and the increasing rates of injury from using these devices, highlight the need for clear regulations and public awareness to prevent accidents.
In WA’s mining and agricultural sectors, injuries from heavy machinery, hazardous materials, and unguarded equipment demand rigorous safety protocols, regular training, and targeted interventions. The AMA (WA) calls for collaborative efforts between government, industry and communities to implement evidence-based strategies that protect lives statewide. Farm and mine sites are some of the most dangerous workplaces in Australia, with agriculture having the highest worker fatality rate in 2021, when 31 people lost their lives, and 18 fatalities on mine sites between 2013 and 2022.
⚠ What WA Needs Now
01: Health Promotion and Prevention
✔ Ban unhealthy food and drink advertising from State-owned assets.
02: Addiction and Substance Use
✔ Regulate online alcohol sales and home delivery to limit harm.
03: Domestic Violence and Medical Access
✔ Expand funding and regional access for the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC).
04: Environmental and Climate Health
✔ Implement Climate Health WA Inquiry recommendations.
05: Injury and Trauma Prevention
“ The AMA (WA) believes that the next State Government must take decisive action to secure the future of healthcare in Western Australia.
2025 State Election Priorities - Summary
PUBLIC HOSPITALS
✔ Invest in subacute care facilities for Geriatric evaluation and services for the elderly.
WORKFORCE
✔ Increase administrative and technological support to allow medical staff to focus on medical management of patients.
MENTAL HEALTH
✔ Make significant and ongoing investments in child and adolescent mental health services, with increased funding and workforce growth each year.
GENERAL PRACTICE
✔ Respect and value the role of general practice by ensuring that any new health service models include GPs as coordinators and navigators in patient care.
RURAL HEALTH
✔ Invest in GP professional development to enhance procedural skills for rural practice.
PRIVATE HEALTH
✔ Reduce WA Payroll Tax burden for private practices, given the escalating costs and capped insurance payments.
ASSETS AND INFRASTRUCTURE
✔ Continue to expand funding and infrastructure for telehealth services.