There has been a big improvement in waiting times for patients in the emergency department at Nambour Hospital.
The National Health Performance Authority report found the Nambour Hospital is among the top 10 performing regional hospitals in Australia that reported an increase of more than 10 per cent in the number of emergency patients treated within four hours.
The report shows 63 per cent of the 44,000 patients at the hospital’s emergency department were seen within four hours in the 12 months to June last year, up from 53 per cent a year earlier.
University hospital car parking
Meanwhile, car parking has been identified as a possible problem at the new $1.8 billion Sunshine Coast University Hospital being built at Kawana.
The issue was raised at a community health forum on the coast yesterday attended by Health Minister Lawrence Springborg.
Mr Springborg says he is not surprised parking was raised as a potential problem as it is one of the biggest challenges in delivering health services in Queensland.
“Hospitals are very busy places. Some of our hospitals around the state employ up to 8,000 people,” he said.
“This hospital here will employ thousands of people when it’s open. so they’re busy places.
“I mean this new health precinct, the Sunshine Coast University Public Hospital and surrounding areas, there’ll be three-and-a-half-thousand car parks there.”