Squeeze on wait times
THE city’s health crisis is reaching dangerous new levels with almost double the number of patients waiting longer for treatment in emergency departments than a year ago, warns the state opposition.
Latest figures show 42 per cent of patients at Gold Coast University Hospital had not been attended to within the recommended time frame during the June 2022 quarter.
This is 19 per cent higher than the previous March quarter, the biggest rise at any hospital in the state.
Meanwhile, Robina Hospital experienced a rise of 13 per cent, quarter to quarter, which means 29 per cent of ED patients were not seen within the clinically recommended time.
Gold Coast Health said every patient rated as lifethreatening category 1 was seen on time, and more treatment areas were being opened.
But Opposition Leader and Broadwater MP David Crisafulli said the latest reporting times were another blow for Coast residents.
“Nearly one in two patients are now waiting longer than the recommended time in the emergency department at the Gold Coast University Hospital,” he said.
“The numbers on the Gold Coast are heading in the wrong direction and the state government must start listening to heal the Queensland health crisis.”
A Gold Coast Health spokesperson said EDs reported an increase of 1120 more presentations in the 2022 financial year compared to the previous year.
In the April to June quarter, there were 48,894 ED presentations across the University Hospital and Robina.
“Every patient with a lifethreatening category 1 presentation was seen within the clinically recommended time,” the spokesperson said.
Average wait time across all categories was 17 minutes, with category 1 presentations (lifethreatening) being seen within two minutes.
The median wait for category 2 presentations (urgent but non-life-threatening) was 11 minutes, against the clinically recommended 10-minute timeframe.
In June, an additional 10 treatment areas were opened at the University Hospital ED to help meet demand and reduce wait times.
Airconditioned temporary structures were used at both hospitals to triage, isolate and treat Covid-19 patients.
“Our hospitals will not turn away anyone who presents at an ED, however our highly trained clinical staff will always attend to the sickest patients first,” a spokesperson said.
“This means people with less serious ailments will need to wait longer than someone that has suffered major trauma or is seriously ill, regardless of whether they arrive by ambulance or via their own transport.”
The Bulletin in June detailed how fewer than 100 new hospital beds would become available in the next two years, despite the city’s health system in crisis.
Residents and visitors with mild symptoms were told to stay away from overflowing EDs.
The state budget showed the government would provide 600 new beds to the Coast but 404 of them would not exist until Coomera Hospital was completed in 2028.
Seventy extra beds at Gold Coast University Hospital and just 20 beds at Robina Hospital will come online by the end of 2024, budget documents show.
Another 114 beds promised for Robina Hospital are subject to lease agreements.
In February, patients said they were sleeping on the floor while others had left the ED at Gold Coast University Hospital due to the lack of beds.
Opposition health spokeswoman Ros Bates on Tuesday told the Bulletin: “The Gold Coast already has the busiest emergency department in the country and it’s only getting worse.
“As a registered nurse and former hospital administrator, I know how stressful it is for my colleagues on the frontline.
“These dedicated men and women are working double shifts week-in, week-out. They deserve more respect and resources from the state government.”