MLHD among fastest districts in the state despite high emergency admissions

Despite the Murrumbidgee Local Health District recording a higher than usual number of attendees presenting to emergency departments, the district has still recorded the second-best wait times in the state.

MLHD saw 40,866 attendances across all of its emergency rooms from April to June this year, a 2.4 per cent jump compared to 2023. Even with the significant jump in attendees, more than 80 per cent of people who visited emergency received their treatment on time.

According to the latest Bureau of Health Information (BHI) Healthcare Quarterly Report, more than seven in 10 patients (72.7 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours of arriving, also better than the state average (54.7 per cent), and one of the best results in the state.

Almost nine in 10 patients (82.8 per cent) were also transferred from paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time – also significantly better than the state average (73.7 per cent).

MLHD Chief Executive Jill Ludford said the results were a testament to the hard work of the staff and medical professionals working across the health district.

“I commend our teams for the dedication they continue to show to the patients in our care,” she said.

“In 12 months, our teams have also reduced the number of patients waiting longer than clinically recommended for a planned surgery by more than 95 per cent, from 592 patients at the end of June 2023 to 18 at the end of June 2024.”

Wait times for semi-urgent and non-urgent surgeries have also reduced significantly. From April to June 2024, 86.1 per cent of semi-urgent surgeries were performed on time – an improvement of 16 percentage points compared with the same quarter last year (70.1 per cent).

More than seven in 10 non-urgent planned surgeries (75.5 per cent) were performed on time – also an improvement of 24 percentage points compared to the same quarter last year (51.5 per cent).

Individual Hospitals

Wagga Wagga Base Hospital

There were 12,114 emergency department attendances at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital in the April to June 2024 quarter, an increase of 1.7 per cent or 200 attendances, in the same period in 2023.

More than two-thirds of patients (68.3 per cent) started treatment on time – better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (57.3 per cent).

More than seven in 10 patients (73.5 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time, which is also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (69.8 per cent).

During the April to June 2024 quarter 1533 planned surgery procedures were performed, with all urgent planned surgeries (100 per cent) performed on time. More than eight in 10 planned surgeries (80.9 per cent) were performed on time overall, an improvement of 20.6 per cent compared to the same quarter in 2023 (60.3 per cent).

Griffith Base Hospital

There were 5991 emergency department attendances at Griffith Base Hospital in the April to June 2024 quarter.

Almost all patients arriving by ambulance were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time (93.8 per cent) – better than the average result for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (86.8 per cent).

Almost eight in 10 patients (76.3 per cent) started treatment on time, which was also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (69.3 per cent).

The majority of patients (74.7 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours, again, better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (60.5 per cent).

During the April to June 2024 quarter at Griffith Base Hospital there were 245 planned surgeries performed, with all planned surgeries (100 per cent) performed on time, an increase of 4.1 percentage points compared to the same quarter in 2023.

Deniliquin Health Service

There were 2693 emergency department attendances at Deniliquin Hospital in the April to June 2024 quarter, down 3.1 per cent or 80 attendances compared to the same period last year.

Almost all patients (95.5 per cent) started treatment on time, which is the best result for hospitals of a similar size in NSW, and significantly better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (77.3 per cent).

More than eight in 10 patients (83.2 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours of arriving – also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (76.7 per cent).

Almost all patients (97.0 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time, also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (93 per cent).

During the April to June 2024 quarter at Deniliquin Health Service there were 48 planned surgeries performed, an increase of 41.2 per cent (14 surgeries) and almost all (95.8 per cent) were performed on time. All urgent planned surgeries (100 per cent) were performed on time.

Young Health Service

There were 2539 emergency department attendances at Young Hospital in the April to June 2024 quarter, an increase of 7.4 per cent, or 176 more attendances, compared to the same quarter in 2023.

More than eight in 10 patients (85.2 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours of arriving, which is one of the best results for hospitals of a similar size in NSW.

Almost eight in 10 (79.7 per cent) started treatment on time, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (77.3 per cent).

During the April to June 2024 quarter, Young Health Service completed 63 planned surgeries and more than eight in 10 (80.3 per cent) were performed on time.