Public hospitals in the Mid North Coast Local Health District continued to improve emergency department performance throughout the first quarter of this year.
Mid North Coast hospitals deliver quality care amid high demand
Jun 07, 2023The latest Bureau of Health Information (BHI) Healthcare Quarterly report January – March 2023 shows public hospitals in Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) continued to improve emergency department performance throughout the first quarter of this year.
MNCLHD Chief Executive Stewart Dowrick thanked staff for their efforts in providing outstanding care to patients throughout another busy period.
“We’ve seen sustained demand for emergency care and also a slight increase in admitted patient activity in the past year,” Mr Dowrick said.
“It’s pleasing to see that our District is above the state average in a number of key performance markers – in particular out ambulance transfer of care times, which are among the best in the state for this quarter.”
There were 35,202 emergency department attendances in the quarter, with more than seven in 10 patients (73.6 per cent) starting their treatment on time, which is better than the state average (67.4 per cent).
More than eight in 10 patients (86.4 per cent) were transferred from ambulances to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, which is also better than the state average (77.7 per cent).
Almost seven in 10 patients (69.4 per cent) left Mid North Coast EDs within four hours from arrival, compared with the state-wide average of 58.2 per cent.
MNCLHD continues to remind the community to keep emergency departments and ambulances for saving lives and consider alternative options for minor conditions such as medical centres or GPs or calling the 24-hour telephone health advice HealthDirect on 1800 022 222.
Throughout the first quarter of 2023, the District performed 2,551 planned surgery procedures, with almost all urgent planned procedures (98.7 per cent) performed on time.
“We continue to work hard to ensure those procedures that were delayed due to the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic are performed as quickly as possible,” Mr Dowrick said.
“Any patients who feel their condition has deteriorated while waiting for their procedure are encouraged to contact their treating doctor for a clinical review and they can be placed in a higher urgency category if required.”
The 2022-23 budget for Mid North Coast Local Health District is more than $775 million, an increase of more than $28 million, or 3.7 per cent more, on the previous year’s budget.
Coffs Harbour Health Campus
Coffs Harbour Health Campus had 11,292 ED attendances in January to March 2023. Almost seven in 10 patients (67.5 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (64.6 per cent).
Almost nine in 10 patients (89.5 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED within the 30-minute benchmark, also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (77 per cent). There were 846 planned surgeries performed throughout the quarter, with almost all urgent planned procedures (98.8 per cent) performed on time.
Kempsey District Hospital
At Kempsey District Hospital, there were 6,661 ED attendances from January to March 2023. More than seven in 10 patients (77 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is in line with the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW. Almost all patients (94.1 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time and almost eight in 10 patients (78.1 per cent) left the ED within four hours of arrival. The hospital performed 288 planned surgeries.
Macksville District Hospital
Macksville District Hospital had 3,299 ED attendances during the January to March 2023 quarter. Nearly all patients (92.8 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is significantly better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (78.4 per cent).
Almost all patients (97.1 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time, also better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (93.9 per cent). Eight in 10 patients (80.3 per cent) left the
ED within four hours of arriving, which is in line with the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (79.3 per cent). The hospital performed 216 planned surgeries.
Port Macquarie Base Hospital
Port Macquarie Base Hospital had 12,342 ED attendances in the January to March 2023 quarter. The majority of patients (68.7 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (64.6 per cent).
Almost eight in 10 patients (77.4 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time.
The majority of patients (68.2 per cent) left the ED within four hours of arriving, which is also better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (53.9 per cent).
The hospital performed 934 planned surgeries, with almost all urgent planned surgeries (99.6 per cent) performed on time.