Plans to expand Victoria's overloaded health system are still in limbo as a long-awaited blueprint provides no detail on where new hospitals will be built.
The "health capital and resources" plan released by Health Minister David Davis on Thursday does not deliver a detailed 12-year plan for health and hospital investments based on future population needs, as promised by the Coalition during the 2010 election.
Instead, the plan sets out projects currently underway and broad principles for future projects such as delivering maximum value for Victorian communities.
Key health groups said the plan was years overdue and failed to provide sufficient detail.
Australian Medical Association state president Tony Bartone said the plan had not provided the promised blueprint for future investment in Victoria's health system.
"Unfortunately the 'building for the future' section of the plan reads like a checklist of already announced or completed projects," he said.
Dr Bartone said the plan contained "only general and opaque statements as to what the current government will take heed of when considering future projects".
Victorian Healthcare Association acting chief executive Tom Symondson said the plan was broadly in line with the organisation's priorities but its lack of detail was disappointing.
"The plan gives describes government work and achievements to date, however some of the actions are unclear and it doesn't describe specific investment," he said.
In its health policy released during the 2010 election, the Coalition promised to deliver a detailed, 12-year capital works plan for Victoria's health system.
It said this was necessary because the health system had "not been planned properly to take account of population growth and the aging of the population".
The result was that some hospitals had "not been planned with sufficient future capacity to accommodate population growth, limiting their lifespan", the policy said.
Mr Symondson said hospitals needed certainty to plan services into the future.
"We understand the political cycle but as a hospital executive you might know that in five years, because of population growth, you're going to have to rebuild ward block A. At the moment you don't know if that's going to happen," he said.
"Most hospitals will have a capital plan, they just don't know if it's going to be funded."
Mr Davis said the plan provided "clear guidance for policy and investment decisions about health capital, so that resources are allocated to benefit all Victorians".
The AMA welcomed a framework for information technology in health services which was included in the plan.
Dr Bartone said this recognised the importance of electronic communications such as discharge summaries. He welcomed $80 million of government funding for various technology projects including $40 million for Monash Health to integrate electronic medical records with medication management programs.
