Victoria’s wait list agony as patients hit by hospital blowouts

Massive budget cuts will force more than 20,000 sick patients to wait for operations at Melbourne’s major hospitals as a result of surgery funding deals signed off by the Andrews Government this week. THE WORST WAITING LISTS REVEALED.

More than 20,000 sick Victorians will have their operations further ­delayed as the state’s hospitals are forced to extend waiting lists in the face of massive budget cuts.

The waiting lists at Melbourne’s major hospitals alone will grow 43 per cent as a result of surgery funding deals signed off by the Andrews ­Government this week.

At those hospitals, 40,754 elective patients will now wait for hip and knee ­replacements, cataract repairs and cardiac and other procedures.

But all corners of the state will be hit by the agreements brokered between health services and Health Minister Jenny Mikakos — with the details buried on a Department of Health website.

Under the deals, Melbourne’s biggest hospitals will be among those placed under the greatest pressure, including the Northern Hospital which faces a 98 per cent jump to its elective surgery waiting list.

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos and Premier Daniel Andrews. Picture: Sarah Matray

The St Vincent’s waiting list is to soar by 79 per cent, Eastern Health will climb 60 per cent, Peninsula 61 per cent and Monash 54 per cent.

Albury Wodonga and Latrobe health services’ elective waiting lists will jump by more than a third, Ballarat is to increase by 17 per cent, Geelong and Bendigo by 10 per cent, and Shepparton by 11 per cent.

Australian Medical Association Victoria president Professor Julian Rait said the state was now in a ­“perfect storm” of inadequate hospital funding and waiting list blowouts, and hospitals could no longer meet community ­expectations. “It is a truly ­appalling state of affairs for the sick and vulnerable of Victoria,” he said.

The St Vincent’s surgery waiting list is set to soar 79 per cent. Picture: Ian Currie

Despite a booming population, falling rates of private health insurance and escalating rates of chronic disease — making our hospitals far busier — the Andrews Government has funded health services to perform 5.28 per cent fewer elective operations, leading to the blowouts.

Prof Rait said: “Morale is low among public hospital doctors and nurses constantly being asked to do more with less, while being denied some basic entitlements.

“The AMA calls on the state government to show greater leadership and prioritise public health care accordingly.”

As revealed by the Herald Sun in July, hospitals were forced to look at cutting services and increasing waiting lists when given draft budgets containing shortfalls of between $20 million and $35 million.

The government faces added pressure from doctors pushing for Fair Work Commission ­action over their entitlements, while at least 18 hospitals want financial bailout assurances from the

Australian Medical Association Victoria president Prof Julian Rait.

Department of Health so they can still operate next year while in debt.

While all of the final 2019-20 agreements include increased funding, hospital sources said the allocations were effectively cuts because they did not keep pace with increased demand.

“Funding has increased, but not in line with our growth and everyone is struggling with that,” one said. Another source said emergency and other ­services would be hit.

But Ms Mikakos said the government had provided ­record funding for all hospitals and turned around a system in ­crisis under the previous Coalition government.

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She said waiting list numbers were not a good indicator of how long ­patients waited for treatment — it would be the lowest on ­record over the next year. “Despite strong population growth, a busy flu season and savage federal funding cuts, our hospitals are treating more people than ever before and Victorians are waiting less time for elective surgery,” Ms Mikakos said.

Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said Victorian patients were at risk “with Daniel Andrews maxing out Victoria’s credit card and vital health funding not keeping up with demand”.

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