Latest data from the Bureau of Health Information reveals continuing problems at the region’s public hospitals, with spikes in Emergency Department (ED) wait times.
The Bureau of Health Information’s recently released Quarterly Report for April-June shows a continuing trend of overload at the EDs of both hospitals, with more than 60 per cent of patients at Gosford Hospital and 52.6 per cent at Wyong in ED for more than four hours between arrival and departure.
These figures were up more than 12 per cent at Gosford and 6 per cent at Wyong compared to the same quarter in 2021.
Patients waiting for ambulances also faced huge wait times, particularly those who were classed as emergency, with fewer than 40 per cent of calls being responded to within 15 minutes.
Wait times for non-urgent elective surgery have ballooned out to 485 days at Gosford and 437 at Wyong.
Shadow Minister for the Central Coast, David Harris, says the statistics demonstrate a failure of investment by long-term Liberal Governments.
“It’s clear to anyone paying attention that this is a staffing crisis a decade in the making,” he said.
“Liberal National Governments at both the Federal and State levels have dropped the ball on training and recruitment together with failure to address pay and working conditions and our hospital system is now seeing the poor outcomes.”
Member for Swansea, Yasmin Catley, said the data confirmed that the system is not coping, resulting in poorer outcomes for patients and staff suffering from burnout after being overworked.
“After 12 years of this Liberal Government under resourcing our health system it has reached its breaking point and urgent action is required to address the problem,” she said.
Member for The Entrance, David Mehan, said the statistics were “worrying” and urged Central Coast Local Health District to outline its plans to improve the system.
Member for Gosford, Liesl Tesch said the news wouldn’t shock anyone who has gone through the doors at Gosford or Wyong Hospital.
“Our Emergency Departments are stretched to capacity and ambulances are queueing for hours to offload patients,” she said.
“Nurses and other health staff are feeling burnt out after years of pay cuts, staff shortages and tough conditions.”
member for gosford, liesl tesch
“It is so important that the Government do something urgently to address this growing crisis at our local hospitals.”
Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD) has emphasised that the report time for EDs reflects total time spent, during which patients are triaged and treated.
CCLHD CEO, Scott McLachlan, said the region’s hospitals and health services faced significant challenges from April to June this year as the Omicron outbreak continued to drive high COVID-19 case numbers and the flu season reached its peak.
“Throughout the second quarter of 2022, the large number of COVID-19 and flu cases in the community not only presented serious challenges with respect to complex presentations and admissions to our hospitals, but also due to staff unavailability as staff contracted or were exposed to respiratory illnesses, whether in the community or at work,” he said.
“People who present to our emergency departments are always triaged and seen according to the clinical urgency of their condition.
“During busy times those with less urgent conditions will experience longer wait times.
“We deeply thank our staff for their dedication and incredible efforts, across all our services, in continuing to provide high quality care for our community during another challenging quarter.
“Since this reporting period, there have been significant improvements in the timeliness of care at Gosford and Wyong Emergency Departments due to measures taken to enhance patient access and flow.”
Terry Collins