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Canberra Today 13°/15° | Saturday, March 30, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Elective surgery lists fall

THE ACT Health Directorate is reporting that there were 4444 people on the ACT public hospitals’ elective
surgery waiting list as of May 31, 19 per cent fewer people than the 5,483 waiting at the same time last year.

The directorate estimates more than 1000 people will access elective surgery in 2010-11 compared with  2009-10, as a result of the additional ACT and Commonwealth funding for elective  surgery.

There were 16,210 surgical procedures performed at ACT public hospitals over the first 11 months of 2010-11, which is 10 per cent more than the 14,691 reported for the same period the previous year.

At May 31, 6110 patients received emergency surgery at ACT public hospitals and there were 459 people waiting longer than one year for surgery – a decrease of 389 from the 848 reported at the same time last year.

? Urology – down 74 per cent, from 486 long-wait patients in May 2010 to just 127 long-wait
patients at May 31.

? Neurosurgery – down 61 per cent, from 31 long-wait patients in May 2010, to 12 long-wait patients in May.

? General surgery – down 50 per cent, from 158 long-wait patients in May 2010 to 79 long-wait
patients this year.

? Plastic surgery – down 27 per cent, from 116 in May 2010 to 85 long-wait patients in May.

? Gynaecology – down 39 per cent, from the 72 long-wait patients in May 2010 to 44 long-wait
patients in May.

Chief Minister Katy Gallagher says an increase in rates is "a standard practice"
Chief Minister Katy Gallagher.
“Median wait times remain slightly above last year’s figures due to the focus on removing people from the long-wait list,” says Chief Minister Katy Gallagher. “These times will improve during 2012 due to the continuation of targeting long-wait patients during 2011.”

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Ian Meikle, editor

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