A re-elected ACT Labor Government will create and protect local jobs with the construction of a second public hydrotherapy pool in Tuggeranong.
Under ACT Labor, the Government has been providing better healthcare, where and when Canberrans need it.
We have built a network of five nurse led walk-in centres, and a new hospital at the University of Canberra which has a modern hydrotherapy pool.
Following our announcement to provide a walk-in health centre in South Tuggeranong, ACT Labor will also improve the health facilities in Tuggeranong with the construction of the city’s second public hydrotherapy pool.
After extensive consultation and market sounding during the last term of Government, Labor’s preferred site for a southside hydrotherapy pool is a co-location with the current Lakeside Leisure Centre facility in the Tuggeranong town centre.
A co-location with the Erindale pool will also be explored as part of the business case process, which will be developed in collaboration with the community and potential pool users before starting the construction of the facility.
The project is expected to create new jobs over the coming years, contributing to our target of 250,000 local jobs by 2025.
ACT Labor Health spokesperson Rachel Stephen-Smith says the investment follows a review of hydrotherapy services in the ACT.
“The construction of a public hydrotherapy pool on the south side of Canberra will complement public hydrotherapy sessions currently run at the University of Canberra Hospital.
“We recognise the importance of accessible healthcare, and of hydrotherapy as an ongoing therapeutic activity for many people with chronic illness to maintain their mobility, manage their pain and gain important mental health benefits.
“That’s why, when Canberra Hospital’s hydrotherapy pool was closed for safety reasons, we committed additional funding of $305,000 over three years for Arthritis ACT to provide 688 additional hydrotherapy sessions a year at Aqua Harmony in Kambah.
“We have heard from hydrotherapy pool users that, as our city grows, a second public facility is needed to support rehabilitation for injuries and improved health outcomes for Canberrans with chronic illness and pain.
"This commitment will ensure Canberrans in the south of our city have even better access to hydrotherapy, where and when they need it.”