Computer systems: When will they ever learn?

Government computer projects almost always end up costing megabucks and even then they often do not work -- Britain's 12 BILLION pound hospital project being the star example. Governments should just use commercially available database programs but the arrogance of thinking that they can do it better usually seems to trump experience. But what do you expect of Leftist bureaucrats? The amusing thing is that these projects are always sold as bringing "savings". So Queensland is doing its little bit towards multiplying the waste:

A State Government management project that has blown an admitted $60 million of taxpayers' money could be $300 million in the red. Government sources said "clever accounting" may have covered up a loss five times worse than reported to Queensland Parliament. Coalition Deputy Leader Bruce Flegg called on Treasurer Andrew Fraser to reveal the true extent of losses from the controversial Shared Service Initiative.

The much-vaunted project, introduced in 2003, involved a five-year overhaul of information and communication technology systems in government departments. But a recent report by the Service Delivery and Performance Commission revealed the initiative had cost taxpayers $157 million for just $97 million in savings. The Government had expected the scheme to save $100 million a year.

A private sector management consultant, who had been contracted by the Government to work on the initiative, told The Sunday Mail that the reported loss of $60 million was way off. "They have overspent by more than $300 million ... the figures have been covered up and buried in various accounts," said the insider, who declined to be identified. He claimed millions of dollars were being spent every week on consultants charging between $1500 and $2000 a day as the Government tried to rescue the project.

Dr Flegg, who told Parliament last week the scheme was a "basket case", said it was time the Government came clean on the cost to taxpayers. "This half a billion-dollar initiative has been poorly executed and has been carried out in secrecy, if not deception," he said.

A public servant who worked on the initiative said it was an ill-thought-out scheme that had been "crippled by mismanagement". "The projected savings have not materialised, the government agencies being serviced are unhappy at the reduced level of service being provided and job satisfaction and morale amongst staff is extremely low," said the bureaucrat.

Mr Fraser told Parliament the Government had to make a significant investment up front "to make gains in the longer term". He ruled out scrapping it or making major changes. "I am moving to appoint a centralised prime contractor to ensure that costs are controlled and time lines are achieved," he told The Sunday Mail. "The Government remains firmly of the view that there are long-term savings to be made from the initiative."

The above article by Darrell Giles appeared in the Brisbane "Sunday Mail" on October 28, 2007





Deceptive interest-rate propaganda

In line with its whatever-it-takes politics, Labor has been running an unrelenting - but highly misleading - campaign emphasising interest-rate rises under the Howard Government. Brought to you by former Carr spinmeister Walt Secord and the Hawker Britton team, it's sufficiently long on fabrication and short on fact to excite the naive and the foolish. Those who lived through Paul Keating's 1991-1992 "recession we had to have", and endured the crippling rate rises used as a blunt instrument to cudgel into submission galloping inflation, aren't so easily fooled.

Seeing the former prime minister and treasurer launch candidate Greg Combet's campaign last week brought to mind Marx's words from 1852 - "history repeats itself first as tragedy, then as farce" - but with the twist that Keating's reappearance is history repeating itself first as tragedy and second as tragedy.

Although it's indisputable that there have been five interest-rate rises since March, 2005 and the prospect of a sixth on Melbourne Cup day seems, according to all the economists, a foregone conclusion, Labor wants to skim over the details. Why? Because each of those rate rises has been by just 0.25 per cent, for a total increase of 1.25 per cent over three years.

During last Monday's worm-infested debate, Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd counted on his fingers to lampoon the five 0.25 per cent increases. It was his little joke, but had he attempted to convey the magnitude of the size of just three rate rises under the Hawke-Keating government in just five months using 0.25 per cent as the equivalent of a finger, he would have needed both fists and a few toes. Between August and December of 1994, interest rates increased by 2.75 per cent. There was a 0.75 per cent hike in August (three times the size of any of the rises under the Howard government); a further one per cent jump in October (four times the size of any of the increases under Howard); and another one per cent in December - all within five months, as opposed to the incremental increases the present Government delivered over 36 months.

Putting it another way, in the space of five months, the Hawke-Keating government whacked home mortgagees with increases more than double the size of those delivered under Howard over three years. It's the comparison Rudd, Secord and the Hawker Britton team don't want you thinking about.

This was at the end of the period that John Howard, from Opposition, dubbed Australia's "five minutes of economic sunshine" because the number of unemployed peaked at one million during the March, 1993 election campaign. A little over 18 months after unemployment hit one million, interest rates were jacked up 2.75 per cent.

There's another significant difference between the record of the last Labor government and that of the current Government that Rudd and the myth-makers prefer to ignore: in 1993-1994, the Budget was in deficit to the tune of $17.1 billion - or 3.7 per cent of GDP - which is equivalent to $37 billion in today's terms. Under the Howard government, Australia has had significant, above-expectations Budget surpluses for four years in a row, and it aims to keep producing surpluses of one per cent of GDP. The surplus was 1.5 per cent of GDP in 2004-05, 1.6 per cent in 2005-06 and 1.6 per cent in 2006-07. For 2007-08, it's expected to be 1.3 per cent.

Further, the constant cry that the 22 per cent overnight cash rate in 1982 - when Howard was treasurer in Malcolm Fraser's government - is a record, is an absolute furphy. Labor has craftily taken Reserve Bank data for the overnight cash rate that was published on a daily basis, but the series only goes back to 1976. On its website, however, the RBA lists monthly averages for the overnight cash rate going back to 1969. They clearly show the highest monthly average for this figure was 21.75 per cent in May, 1974, whereas the monthly average in April, 1982 was 21.39 per cent. This may be splitting hairs and counting angels dancing on the heads of pins, but if you're going to toss a figure out you should get it right. Labor's claim is just not true.

For those who still don't understand the magnitude of the achievement of the Howard fiscal policy and who continue to shriek about the threat of high interest rates, let me put it another way. It would take another eight rises, each of 0.25 per cent, just to get to the 10.5 per cent interest rate that applied when Howard was first elected in 1996. To get to the Keating level, it would take nearly three years if an increase of 0.25 per cent was applied each month.

True, the Hawke-Keating government made some welcome economic reforms - all of which were supported by the Opposition at the time. True, all of the Howard government's economic reforms have been opposed by the ALP.

But, further, it is Rudd who now wants to wind back the Government's reforms, risking a breakout in wages growth that would inevitably force the RBA to impose interest-rate hikes of a magnitude not seen since the Hawke-Keating era. That threat alone shows that Rudd has no idea of the economic consequences of his industrial-relations policy. Labor claims to be able to manage an economy. The evidence clearly demonstrates otherwise, as Paul Keating's presence reminded us last week.

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THE QUEENSLAND PUBLIC HOSPITAL SYSTEM IS STILL STAGGERING

It's not only NSW. Three reports below



Public hospital negligence destroys a baby's future

How would YOU like to send your baby to hospital with diarrhoea and get him back with a damaged brain? It didn't happen to me. When my son developed gastro problems in his early childhood, he was taken to a top private hospital and immediately put on a drip. He was not released until he was well again. He is now a 6' tall healthy wealthy and happy mathematician. Working hard and saving your money really helps. Spending it as you get it is negligent because trusting your children to the government is negligent -- as negligence is all you can reliably expect from any government system. Negligence works in its own way too -- a very sad way, as we see below:

A year ago baby Ryan Mason was a happy, healthy newborn, delighting his young parents with his smiles. But at just 11 weeks Ryan developed severe brain damage after being sent home from Caboolture Hospital while allegedly still dehydrated and suffering gastroenteritis. A few hours after arriving home the baby turned blue, stopped breathing and suffered cardiorespiratory arrest while his parents rushed him back to hospital. Ryan was flown to Royal Brisbane Hospital, where his 22-year-old parents, Teisha-Lee and Tim Mason of Toorbul, north of Brisbane, were told he had brain damage. Ryan, now 13 months, developed cerebral palsy, cannot hold his head up or control his arms and may have vision problems.

A claim for damages for personal injuries has been served on Queensland Health, along with an expert's report, by Quinn and Scattini Lawyers. Dr John Raftos, a senior Sydney emergency medicine specialist, said in the report it was his opinion that if hospital staff "had properly assessed and treated Ryan's gastroenteritis and dehydration he would not, on balance of probabilities, have developed hypovolaemic shock and permanent brain damage".

Ryan had been having bouts of diarrhoea when Mrs Mason first took him to Caboolture Hospital on December 10 last year. He was diagnosed with gastroenteritis and sent home, but the next day he was admitted and treated with intravenous fluids for dehydration. Mrs Mason said that during his second night Ryan had diarrhoea every 20 minutes from midnight until 5am on December 13 and was screaming.

Medical records showed that a pediatric team ordered that Ryan and his wet nappies be weighed four times a day to check on his rehydration. Dr Raftos said in his report this was not done and in his opinion Ryan was discharged home while still dehydrated. Lawyer Damian Scattini said Ryan's case was "another preventable tragedy brought about by systems failure within a Queensland public hospital".

A Queensland Health spokeswoman said the department could not comment on legal proceedings.

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State government caves in on one hospital

With a "fudge" that would do the British proud. A "British fudge" is a bit hard to define but it is basically a partial retreat or concession that is disguised as not being a retreat or a concession

The crisis at Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital has been solved, with all beds to be reopened and surgery restored after cancellations. A budget blowout had forced the hospital to turn away the sick last week, with 60 beds closed and 20 per cent of operating theatre procedures cancelled. But Premier Anna Bligh stepped in yesterday and ordered the impasse be resolved. She eased the squeeze on hospital budget constraints - giving the PA an extra year to balance the books - and hinted that extra funds would be handed over in December.

The situation had been in deadlock with PA management and the Australian Medical Association Queensland accusing the Queensland Government of under-funding one of the state's biggest public hospitals. Ms Bligh had refused extra money for the hospital, saying it had to manage on a record $33 million budget increase this year. An eight-hour "bypass" on Wednesday, when all new patients were redirected to another hospital, made the emergency worse.

But Ms Bligh - as she did with the Caboolture Hospital ER crisis two years ago - brokered a peace deal with the AMAQ and hospital managers. There was no initial new money, but sources said the PA Hospital would be well compensated by the Government at the mid-year Budget review. Ms Bligh told The Sunday Mail the agreement would see the projected budget over-run of $18 million progressively reduced over the next 18 months rather than in the current financial year.

She said PA chief executive officer Dr David Theile would introduce efficiency measures, including replacing nursing agency staff with Queensland Health-employed nurses. "This agreement, achieved after constructive talks between the Government, hospital managers and the AMAQ today, is good news for patients," Ms Bligh said. "The PA Hospital will progressively reopen beds and restore theatre lists. This will enable the hospital to return to full activity within a few weeks. "I have restated my commitment to reviewing the need for any increase in the PA Hospital's budget, along with all other public hospitals, in the mid-year Budget review. "Further, the Government will review funding needs for the whole public health system for 2008-09 and following years, as part of the Budget process early next year."

Ms Bligh and Dr Theile had clashed last week, with the Premier saying taxpayers were "entitled to see strong management ensuring that budgets are maintained". She denied a Government backflip on the issue yesterday after sending in her Director-General Ken Smith to negotiate with hospital management and the AMAQ. Ms Bligh said the Government would work with the hospital to manage its budget to ensure clinical standards were maintained, beds were reopened and theatre lists restored.

Leading PA visiting medical officer and AMAQ president Ross Cartmill welcomed the agreement and said the resolution was in the best interest of patients. "The Government's commitments today give me the confidence the PA Hospital can continue to provide top-quality service to our patients now and into the future," he said.

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Hospital pen-pusher jobs on increase

ALMOST two-thirds of new appointments in Queensland public hospitals are non-medical, latest figures reveal. From May 2005-2006, Queensland Health boasted, clinical staff increased by 1200, but official figures show that 3196 extra staff were employed. A report stated that Queensland Health spent 82 per cent more on administration than any other state. [Because it is Australia's oldest "free" hospital system (started in 1944) and the cancer of bureaucracy has had longer to grow]

Liberal leader Bruce Flegg said money was being wasted on pen pushers: "Patients should not have to suffer because the numbers aren't right in the budget. Cuts should have been made from non-clinical areas." The Australian Medical Association said no cuts had been made to administration staff at the PA, but patients' operations had been cancelled.

Queensland AMA president Dr Ross Cartmill, who works at the PA, urged QH to investigate how many non-clinical staff were employed. "There are two types of non-clinical staff - the clinical support staff who work with the clinicians to make their life easier, and then there are the other group which is those who are employed purely in an administration role. We do believe too many of those . . . have been employed."

Representatives of QH and Health Minister Stephen Robertson refused to reveal how many non-clinical staff QH or the PA employed in the last year.

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