Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital continues to cut waiting lists
Published Thursday, 06 November, 2008 at 04:28 PM
Minister for Health
The Honourable Stephen Robertson
The Queensland Health quarterly public hospitals performance report September quarter
2008, released today, shows the number of people waiting for elective surgery in
Queensland’s largest and busiest hospital has dropped over the past 12 months.
Hospital operating theatres were busy throughout the September quarter with 3657 patients admitted from waiting lists for elective surgeries – the same number as the June quarter and an increase of 7.2 per cent compared to the March quarter 2008.
As of October 1, 2008 the Royal’s Category 1 waiting list showed 2.7 per cent of patients were waiting longer than the desired 30 days for surgery, compared to 4.2 per cent at October 1, 2007.
The number of Category 2 patients waiting longer than the desired 90 days for surgery was 26.5 per cent.
Inroads have also been made into the non-urgent (Category 3) patients, those waiting up to one year for their procedure, which has fallen from 57.4 per cent at October 1, 2007 to 47.8 per cent one year later.
Health Minister Stephen Robertson said the surgery department and operating theatres were to be commended for continuing to achieve such good results.
Minister Robertson said the increase in activity was partly due to the elective surgery collaboration between Royal Brisbane and Women’s, Caboolture, The Prince Charles and Redcliffe hospitals which was established to reduce elective surgery waiting times for residents living in the northern areas of Brisbane.
He said with two more operating theatres due to open at the Royal later this year, further cuts to elective surgery waiting lists would be achieved.
With a further 95,721 outpatient occasions of service in the September quarter, the RBWH remains one of the busiest hospitals in Australia.
The doctors and nurses from RBWH’s busy emergency department treated 17,858 patients in the September quarter – a 1.3 per cent increase from the 17,627 in the June quarter2008.
Mr Robertson said in response to increased winter demand throughout the State this quarter, Queensland Health had put in place a comprehensive access block strategy to cope with the increasing demand for emergency care.
“I have endorsed an eight point, Whole-of-Hospital plan compiled by Senior Emergency Clinicians to reduce access block across our major public hospitals* to reduce emergency department and admission waiting times even further.
There was also an increased demand for service and a matching increase in service delivery, for patients who needed to be admitted throughout the September quarter, with 18,960 admitted patient episodes of care - up 1.1 per cent from the 18,754 in the June quarter 2008.
Mr Robertson said the results showed RBWH continued to provide quality health care to Queenslanders.
“We continue to work hard to improve our performance and have undertaken a range of initiatives to ensure RBWH continues to perform to a high standard,” he said.
The Queensland Public Hospitals Quarterly Performance Report (September 08 quarter) will be available in the What's New section of the Queensland Health website at http://www.health.qld.gov.au/.
Ends.
MEDIA: Kate Van Poelgeest 3234 1185 or Martin Philip 3235 2680
* The eight points are:
• Implementing robust internal processes to improve bed availability.
• Ensuring timely and appropriate discharge protocols are in place with executive directors of Medical Services and Nursing directly involved in managing this.
• Enabling key staff to have input into developing strategies to reduce pressure on emergency departments.
• Introducing into performance contracts for District CEOs personal accountabilities for managing organisational issues impacting access block.
• Focussing on whole of hospital performance indicators for access block.
• Developing and implementing predictive software to enhance bed management.
• Working with the Divisions of General Practice to enhance access to GP and other community-based services.
• Creating a senior position within Queensland Health to bring an organisation-wide focus to improving emergency department services and links with intensive care issues.
2008, released today, shows the number of people waiting for elective surgery in
Queensland’s largest and busiest hospital has dropped over the past 12 months.
Hospital operating theatres were busy throughout the September quarter with 3657 patients admitted from waiting lists for elective surgeries – the same number as the June quarter and an increase of 7.2 per cent compared to the March quarter 2008.
As of October 1, 2008 the Royal’s Category 1 waiting list showed 2.7 per cent of patients were waiting longer than the desired 30 days for surgery, compared to 4.2 per cent at October 1, 2007.
The number of Category 2 patients waiting longer than the desired 90 days for surgery was 26.5 per cent.
Inroads have also been made into the non-urgent (Category 3) patients, those waiting up to one year for their procedure, which has fallen from 57.4 per cent at October 1, 2007 to 47.8 per cent one year later.
Health Minister Stephen Robertson said the surgery department and operating theatres were to be commended for continuing to achieve such good results.
Minister Robertson said the increase in activity was partly due to the elective surgery collaboration between Royal Brisbane and Women’s, Caboolture, The Prince Charles and Redcliffe hospitals which was established to reduce elective surgery waiting times for residents living in the northern areas of Brisbane.
He said with two more operating theatres due to open at the Royal later this year, further cuts to elective surgery waiting lists would be achieved.
With a further 95,721 outpatient occasions of service in the September quarter, the RBWH remains one of the busiest hospitals in Australia.
The doctors and nurses from RBWH’s busy emergency department treated 17,858 patients in the September quarter – a 1.3 per cent increase from the 17,627 in the June quarter2008.
Mr Robertson said in response to increased winter demand throughout the State this quarter, Queensland Health had put in place a comprehensive access block strategy to cope with the increasing demand for emergency care.
“I have endorsed an eight point, Whole-of-Hospital plan compiled by Senior Emergency Clinicians to reduce access block across our major public hospitals* to reduce emergency department and admission waiting times even further.
There was also an increased demand for service and a matching increase in service delivery, for patients who needed to be admitted throughout the September quarter, with 18,960 admitted patient episodes of care - up 1.1 per cent from the 18,754 in the June quarter 2008.
Mr Robertson said the results showed RBWH continued to provide quality health care to Queenslanders.
“We continue to work hard to improve our performance and have undertaken a range of initiatives to ensure RBWH continues to perform to a high standard,” he said.
The Queensland Public Hospitals Quarterly Performance Report (September 08 quarter) will be available in the What's New section of the Queensland Health website at http://www.health.qld.gov.au/.
Ends.
MEDIA: Kate Van Poelgeest 3234 1185 or Martin Philip 3235 2680
* The eight points are:
• Implementing robust internal processes to improve bed availability.
• Ensuring timely and appropriate discharge protocols are in place with executive directors of Medical Services and Nursing directly involved in managing this.
• Enabling key staff to have input into developing strategies to reduce pressure on emergency departments.
• Introducing into performance contracts for District CEOs personal accountabilities for managing organisational issues impacting access block.
• Focussing on whole of hospital performance indicators for access block.
• Developing and implementing predictive software to enhance bed management.
• Working with the Divisions of General Practice to enhance access to GP and other community-based services.
• Creating a senior position within Queensland Health to bring an organisation-wide focus to improving emergency department services and links with intensive care issues.