Rosalie Woodruff MP | Greens Health spokesperson
The AMA Public Hospital Report Card is a shocking record of the Hodgman government’s mismanagement of our hospitals. Tasmania is one of only two states to fail every national performance target for public hospitals in the last year.
The elective surgery wait time has jumped from 45 to 55 days, a 22% increase from last year, and far greater than any time in the last 14 years. And only 43% of Tasmanians are seen on time for elective surgery, less than half the national target we signed up to.
Previous state data also showed dramatic increases in elective surgery wait times since the Liberals took office. For over a decade, the Tasmanian quarterly health statistics were published, but the Liberals now only report these figures once a year.
The Report Card shows a disturbing downward trend in the number of urgent emergency patients being seen on time, despite steady improvements over the previous six years.
Doctors and nurses have been pleading for help with this crisis for over a year. It’s obvious that hospital staff are struggling to cope with fewer and fewer resources.
The Report makes it clear this is a situation created by budgetary decisions, and now we are seeing the dramatic and direct impact on sick Tasmanians.
Tasmania is facing a crisis in the provision of essential healthcare services. Minister Ferguson needs to do everything he can to reverse this trend, and put the money that is needed back into our health system.
These declines make a mockery of national targets to significantly lift the performance of public hospitals, that Tasmania has signed up to.