64 stranded Australians in Gold Coast hospitals waiting for care

• 64 patients have been stranded in Gold Coast Hospitals, urgently waiting for tailored care placements to be delivered by the Australian Government.
• Australian Government urged to address funding shortfalls keeping patients in hospitals instead of in appropriate care.
• Federal Government's stranded patients leaving Gold Coast Hospitals under pressure and delaying access to specialist health services when Queenslanders need them. 

The Queensland Government is calling on the Australian Government to urgently meet its responsibilities to Queenslanders waiting for aged care placements and National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) assistance on the Gold Coast, after revelations stranded patients are waiting in Gold Coast hospitals.

Through no fault of their own, 64 stranded patients are occupying beds in Gold Coast HHS facilities, including 16 younger and 48 older patients, who have been medically cleared for discharge but remain in hospital.

A funding shortfall from the Australian Government has left the patients without suitable care options and languishing in hospital beds.

The Queensland Government is doing everything it can to ensure patients receive the healthcare they need and deserve, however funding for the NDIS and aged care is primarily the responsibility of the Australian Government.

These older patients cost the health system $1.91 million every day - costs that should rightly be met by the Commonwealth and a further 290 younger NDIS patients are also awaiting discharge, adding $660,000 per day. 

The region has three hospitals, including Gold Coast University Hospital, Robina Hospital and Varsity Lakes Day Hospital, and two health precincts providing healthcare to the people of the Gold Coast.

Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Tim Nicholls said the Crisafulli Government was doing its part to strengthen Queensland’s health system for the future.

“We are committed to improving access to healthcare across Queensland, reducing ambulance ramping, and increasing life-changing elective surgeries,” Mr Nicholls said.

“As part of our Hospital Rescue Plan, we are delivering more than 2,600 new hospital beds across three new and 10 expanded hospitals, as well as new and upgraded health facilities across Queensland.

“While we are seeing the elective surgery wait list decrease and important progress on our Plan, there is much more to be done to restore health services when you need them, and we remain committed to delivering the fresh start we promised.”

Dr Ben Chen, Gold Coast Health Clinical Director of Rehabilitation, Aged Care and Community Services said hospitals were managing the best they could the many nuances and barriers to the discharge of complex patients.

“Our patients often don’t have a loud voice in the system, but their stories, their needs, and their quiet moments matter,” Dr Chen said.

“My own parents are ageing, and their care needs are gradually increasing.

“It has taught me in my clinical work to be more accommodating, to be understanding of the choices people make to live their lives, to disagree respectfully and negotiate tactfully, and to act consistently with the values that we espouse.” 

ENDS

MEDIA CONTACT: Emma Morton, 0410 657 890

Key statistics [as at August 2025]: 

• 1,126 patients are experiencing delayed discharge in Queensland, with an additional 486 patients in interim care.
• The Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service (HHS) reported 64 long-stay patients, including 16 long-stay younger patients and 48 long-stay older patients.
• The median length of stay for a long-stay younger patient is 48 days on the Gold Coast.
• 50 per cent of Gold Coast HHS long-stay older patients are waiting for a residential aged care home (RACH) for discharge. 
• The number of older Queenslanders is projected to more than double, reaching 1.7 million people by 2053.  
• Additionally, hospitalisations are expected to surge by 34 per cent by 2033 – the pressure on the system will intensify.