ED waiting times getting worse

Stuff reports:

People visiting Middlemore Hospital’s emergency department faced close to a seven-hour wait on Monday. 

At midday, there was a 6 hour 43 minute wait to be seen, according to a display screen in the south Auckland hospital. …

The Ministry of Health sets a target for 95 per cent of patients to be admitted, discharged, or transferred from an ED within six hours. 

Figures from Counties Manukau Health’s Hospital Advisory Committee meetings show the DHB has been been struggling to meet this target. 

The most recent figures available, from August, show 84 per cent were seen within the time frame. In June, it was 89 per cent.

A year ago over 92% of ED patients at Middlemore were seen within six hours. A year later it is now 84%.

Possibly not by coincidence the new Government decided to stop publishing how DHBs are performing against the targets.