The state of hospitals in NSW.
More than a third of patients in five of Sydney’s major hospitals are failing to be treated in emergency departments within four hours, new figures show.
Despite huge improvements in waiting times at some hospitals over the past two years, the state has once again failed to meet targets requiring patients to leave emergency on time. And experts say the upcoming $55 billion federal budget cuts to hospital funding combined with new GP co-payments could undermine recent improvements and drive overburdened hospitals backwards.
Australasian College for Emergency Medicine President Anthony Cross said the only way patients could be treated quickly was if the whole hospital was funded and run effectively.
“That means the ambulance system has to work, the emergency department has to work, there has to be adequate aged care and rehabilitation beds,” he said. “Despite all the flaws in the four-hour rule it … has clearly focused everyone on ensuring the whole healthcare system is functioning effectively.”