The Hodgman Liberal Government’s Plan to reduce elective surgery waiting lists is working with the elective surgery waiting list at its lowest point in almost three years.
Over the past twelve months to the end of April the waiting list has fallen by more than 1700 people, we have also seen significant falls in the number of people waiting too long for their surgery, referred to as over boundary patients.
In fact the over-boundary waiting list has fallen to its lowest point since current data collection commenced in 2005, an all time low of 2 463 people.
In the past 12 months alone the number of over boundary patients has dropped by almost 1700 people across the State – this is a fall of 40 per cent.
This includes reductions of:
• More than 120 people at the North West Regional and Mersey Community Hospitals, a drop of 44 per cent
• More than 540 people at the Royal Hobart Hospital, a drop of 29 per cent
• Almost 1000 people at LGH, a drop of 50 percent.
We have taken action where Labor and the Greens failed by committing an extra $76 million for elective surgery when we came to government as well as strategically investing funding from the Commonwealth and working better with private hospitals, which Labor has opposed on ideological grounds. Our Plan for the Mersey Community Hospital to become a dedicated elective surgery centre from July will further assist in reducing waiting lists.
Under the previous government there were almost 120 patients who had waited more than three years in excess of the clinically recommended waiting time, including some that had waited 8, 9 even 10 years.
This figure is now down to three patients, with plans in place to treat them in coming months.
With the Budget back on track we can afford to reinvest more in essential services such as health, with a record $6.4 billion investment over the next four years.
Under the One State, One Health System, Better Outcomes reforms the Liberal Government is changing the way our health system operates, and we will continue to take action to ensure better, timelier health services for Tasmanians.
