Wait times drop for ED patients

Bay of Plenty patients are spending less time in Emergency Department waiting rooms thanks to the local health board reaching a 95 per cent national health target.

Bay of Plenty District Health Board chief operating officer Pete Chandler calls the organisation's achievement of the Ministry of Health's Shorter Stays in ED target an excellent result.


The Bay of Plenty District Health Board has achieved the national target of treating Emergency Department patients. Photo: File.

The target states 95 per cent of ED patients must be admitted, discharged or transferred within six hours.

Pete is delighted the national target has been achieved across both Whakatane and Tauranga hospitals - made all the more noteworthy as it comes in response to record numbers of patients.

For the six months to December 2014, ED presentations at Tauranga Hospital grew nine per cent compared to the same period for the previous year.

'The result validates the system efficiencies we've implemented which mean our communities are now waiting less time in ED,” says Pete.

'Continuing to reduce ED waiting times needed a sector-wide approach.

'In the light of the increase in presentations, many of which are not critically urgent, we are increasingly working with our GP practice partners and PHOs to improve the whole health sector's ability to optimally care for the acute care needs of our patients.”

The news comes as the Ministry of Health released its national health target results for the nation's 20 DHBs for the October-December 2014 reporting period. Each DHB is measured against six targets.

In other results, the target for the number of elective surgeries undertaken was met and exceeded once again.

'We performed more than our contracted volumes of elective surgery in the October-December period which has enabled us to reduce the amount of time people wait for their operations,” says Pete.

'Elective surgical patients, who are fit and ready for their procedure, are now treated within a maximum four-month waiting time.”

The Better Help for Smokers to Quit target states 90 per cent of enrolled patients who smoke and are seen by a GP health practitioner should be offered advice to quit.

'Almost every smoker who attended Bay of Plenty general practices in 2014 was given advice to give up tobacco for good,” says BOPDHB planning and funding population health portfolio manager Brian Pointon.

'Many smokers then accepted an offer for support to begin a quit attempt.

'The target is 90 per cent but in the BOP, 97 per cent of patients got this advice. This ranked BOPDHB fourth out of the 20 DHBs and all Primary Health Organisations individually achieved the target.

'This is the second successive quarter that the target has been achieved.”

The Faster Cancer Treatment health target, which aims for 85 per cent of patients to receive their first cancer treatment or other management within 62 days of referral, is being reported on for the first time.

'Published results show 57 per cent of patients received their first treatment within 62 days,” says BOPDHB surgical services business leader Bronwyn Anstis.

'This result reflects that collection of accurate data and information for this target is still a work in progress. The BOPDHB expects this to improve for the next quarter result.”

GP practices improved their performance for the More Heart and Diabetes Checks target from 87 per cent to 88 percent, against the target of 90 per cent of the eligible population having had their cardiovascular risk assessed in the last five years.

Amongst other initiatives, primary care nursing services are actively seeking out eligible patients that GPs are having difficulty connecting with.

Some 89 per cent was recorded against the Increased Immunisation target of 95 per cent of eight-month-olds having their primary course of immunisation on time, at six weeks, three months and five months.

The BOPDHB continues to work with its primary care partners to identify areas for service enhancement and improved outcomes for the district's children.

You may also like....

0 comments

Leave a Comment


You must be logged in to make a comment.