Geelong hospital emergency department under pressure, figures show

The pressure being placed on Geelong hospital has been laid bare by startling new figures.

Barwon Health CEO Frances Diver. Picture: Alan Barber

New data has detailed long waits at Geelong hospital’s emergency department, with Barwon Health conceding workforce shortages issues are an ongoing challenge.

The 90th percentile wait time – the amount of time in which 90 per cent of all patients presenting to the emergency department were seen by a nurse or doctor – at Geelong hospital increased again.

It rose from 189 minutes to 201 between the June and September quarters, the Victorian Agency for Health Information (VAHI) figures showed.

Statewide, that was at 130 minutes for the September quarter.

Presentations at the Geelong hospital emergency department dropped, from 19,672 in the June quarter to 18,618 in the September quarter.

Geelong hospital’s elective surgery waitlist also grew, from 2438 patients on June 30 to 2489 three months later.

Barwon Health spokeswoman Kate Bibby said VAHI identified access to elective surgery at the service improved, with those waiting longer than their clinically recommended times dropping.

“Between June 30 and September 30, all category one patients were treated in 30 days,” she said.

“The number of people waiting for surgery is stable, however this is expected to

decrease in the 2022-23 year due to new initiatives such as the opening of the Youang

Surgery Centre.

Ms Bibby said the time to treatment in Barwon Health’s emergency department varied based on clinical need and urgency.

“There are a range of initiatives in place to support better access,” she said.

Ms Bibby said workforce shortages continue to challenge health services.

A state government spokeswoman said continued pressure from the Covid-19 pandemic, a busy flu season and record demand had seen sicker patients presenting and staying longer in hospitals.

“The government is working closely with Barwon Health to provide residents with the very best of care as efficiently and safely as possible,” she said.

“The government’s Covid-Catch Up Plan will ensure the waiting list in Geelong comes down, and projects such as the construction of the new Barwon Women’s and Children’s Hospital and easier access to local primary care will reduce pressures on the ED.

“The Government is investing billions of dollars to get the health system back on track – getting more paramedics on the road, recruiting more triple-0 call takers, doubling the Virtual ED and deploying patient flow specialists across 12 major hospitals, including at Geelong.”

Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said its plan had real solutions to fix the health crisis in Victoria.

“We will build and upgrade hospitals right across the state, train and retrain more nurses and halve the elective surgery waitlist in our first term,” she said.

“A Matt Guy led Government will build a new Women’s and Children’s hospital, a new 800 carpark for University Hospital, and commission a feasibility study into a new second hospital to service Greater Geelong’s growing suburbs.”

Originally published as Geelong hospital emergency department under pressure, figures show