Queensland's government has launched a $35 million health initiative aimed at reducing hospitalisations as doctors warn the nation's public hospitals are facing a funding crisis.
Health Minister Cameron Dick says the innovation fund will help avoid unnecessary hospital admissions and duplicate testing while leading to better cooperation between health services.
"This innovation fund is a way to try and keep people out of hospitals, but it's about treating people where they need to be treated best," he said on Thursday.
"Hopefully in many cases that will be in their communities, near their homes, near where they work."
It comes as the Australian Medical Association says its latest hospitals' report card points to an imminent crisis due to federal funding cuts.
Mr Dick said the cuts would rip $11.8 billion out of Queensland's health system over seven years from 2018.
"The AMA is quite right, we're going to have a huge challenge ahead of us if the federal government's funding continues to diminish," he said.
"That report makes it clear waiting lists will grow."
AMA Queensland chair of the Council of General Practice, Dr Richard Kidd, said the state's integrated care innovation fund was "wonderful" but delivering great outcomes for patients and savings would be challenging.
Hospitals across the state would compete for funding and would have to come up with innovative ideas that made a significant difference to the community.
However, Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg said the state government couldn't blame the Commonwealth for funding shortfalls that might impact on services because the state needed to plan for possible federal funding changes.
Mr Springborg, the state's former health minister, said he was able to revitalise the health portfolio by creating local health boards, but the health system had been slipping back towards a more centralised structure since Labor took office last year.
"There's more central control and less focus now on performance and more focus now on inputs," Mr Springborg said.
"They're talking more around money invested rather than what the money they invest actually achieves.
"If you do that, you can never get the outcomes that you need."
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