How long you’ll wait for elective surgery in Mackay

A record number of surgeries was performed in the Mackay region

Mackay Base Hospital Emergency Department staff administration officer Heather Ryan, operational officer Jenny Sutton, registered nurses Lorna Stewart and Cherie Tickner and Dr Eloise Middleton.

PATIENTS are waiting less time for elective surgery amid a record number of operations through the Mackay Hospital and Health Service.

In the past financial year, the percentage of patients treated within the clinically recommended time for category one was 84.6 per cent.

The percentage of patients treated within the clinically recommended time in category one, or the most urgent cases, this year rose to 95.7 per cent.

“No patients who were ready for surgery were waiting longer than the clinically recommended time at June 30, 2019,” MHHS chief executive officer Jo Whitehead said.

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She said the ability to treat elective surgery patients within clinically recommended times was dependent on the number of emergency surgery cases.

“Not only did we perform more elective surgery in 2018-19, we performed additional emergency surgery,” Ms Whitehead said.

“Surgical cases are prioritised each day to ensure that the most urgent, life threatening surgical cases are treated.

“This unfortunately means that in some instances elective surgical cases are delayed.”

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