There has been a more than tenfold increase in a year in the number of Victorians spending more than 24 hours in the state hospital emergency departments, as hospitals grappled with severe staffing constraints and COVID and flu over winter.

The latest quarterly health performance data released on Friday morning shows a dramatic surge in the number of people who have been stuck in emergency departments for more than 24 hours, as they waited for a bed to become available at hospitals struggling under the weight of COVID-19, the flu, severe staffing shortages and the implications of delayed care.

The number of Victorians waiting longer than 24 hours for emergency care in the state’s hospitals has risen tenfold over the past year.Credit:Damian Shaw

The state government data, from the Victorian Agency for Health Information, shows that from July to September this year, 3676 people had their emergency department stays stretch for more than 24 hours, a more than tenfold increase in a year.

For the same quarter last year, about 270 people waited longer than 24 hours in emergency departments.

It is also more than double the 1844 patients who had their ED stays last more than 24 hours between April and June this year.

Meanwhile, there was small improvement to the number of Victorians waiting for planned or elective surgeries. The waitlist is now at 84,995 – a decrease of about 2000 in three months.

About 75 per cent of people are getting their surgery completed within the recommended time frame.

More to come

Most Viewed in National

Source: Read Full Article