The key healthcare messages from the 48th Parliament’s Maiden speeches

Maiden speeches are a key window into each new Parliament, and the 48^th Parliament is no exception.

With 32 first speeches and one second first speech (courtesy of Tim Wilson), we are presented with an overview of the views, motivations, and passions of over 20% of the House of Representatives.

Altogether, this is over 105,967 words, across 11 hours of speeches. If you read a page a day, it would take over half a year to get through them all.

Given the importance of Healthcare issues to the campaign that saw these 33 new members elected, it is no surprise that Healthcare takes up a significant portion of these speeches. Health is mentioned 115 times, Care 222 times, Medicare 29 times, Hospital 22 times, Clinic 17 times, and Doctor 16 times.

Common themes included:

• Building a truly free and universal healthcare system.
• A greater focus on preventative healthcare.
• Greater access to bulk billing.
• Expanding scope of practices for pharmacists and nurses to relieve pressure on GPs.
• Gratitude to Australian Healthcare workers.
• Encouraging Mental Health Support.
• Expanding rural, regional, and remote healthcare.
• The benefits of Vaccination.
• Expanding urgent care clinics.

This isn’t just policy, for many it’s personal. Members shared raw, deeply personal stories about what Australian healthcare means to them, such as.

• Ali France’s experience losing her leg to amputation and her son to Leukemia.
• Renee Coffey’s diagnosis with multiple sclerosis.
• Tom French’s chronic kidney failure and 2020 kidney transplant.
• Madonna Jarret’s meeting with a crying constituent, grateful her cancer treatment had been listed on the PBS.
• Trish Cook’s life changing experience as a nurse in remote Indigenous Communities.
• Carol Berry’s passion for Women’s Health, fueled by her time working with indigenous domestic violence victims.
• Alice Jordan-Baird’s experience supporting music and play therapists on Children’s Wards in the Royal Children’s Hospital, bringing light to extremely difficult times.

This is just a small sample of the depth of lived experience the 48^th parliament has with Australian Healthcare, and the passion that flows from it.

There has never been a better time to build relationships with champions of healthcare causes in parliament, and the earlier you build them, the more you position yourself to benefit from their future success.

To discuss how to our services can assist your advocacy to the 48th parliament, please get in touch.

You can watch a playlist of the first speeches at the link below.