Region-specific approach required to reduce elective surgery wait times
To fix the disproportionate wait times for elective surgery in the regions we must implement purpose-built strategies specific for each community, AMA Queensland President Dr Nick Yim told ABC Radio Hervey Bay. "A strategy that might be working in Mount Isa might not be the same strategy that works in say, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay. It's just consulting with the staff to see what the deficiencies are and work with what we've got."
Transcript: AMA Queensland President, Dr Nick Yim, ABC Radio Hervey Bay, Breakfast with David Dowsett, Tuesday 26 November 2024
Subjects: Elective surgery wait lists
DAVID DOWSETT: When you do require elective surgery, there's an expectation that there's going to be some waiting time. You've got to expect that, I suppose. But you know, how long is too long? Well, the Australian Medical Association Queensland says that in the Wide Bay patients are waiting disproportionately long times to get the surgeries they need. President of AMA Queensland Dr Nick Yim, Good morning.
DR NICK YIM: Good morning, David.
DAVID DOWSETT: Now we know this is affecting elective surgeries. What sort of procedures are we actually talking about?
DR NICK YIM: So a bit of a summary. AMA Queensland, we had a Surgical Wait List Roundtable which was a collaboration between surgeons, emergency doctors, and GPs across the state to look at strategies to assist the government to address the surgical waitlists across Queensland. In the Wide Bay, many of us know that there are challenges in particular areas such as gynaecology, urology and even orthopaedic surgery. These are the challenges that we're facing in our region.
DAVID DOWSETT: So how long should it actually take to get these kind of surgeries?
DR NICK YIM: This is a great challenge, isn't it? As a GP in Hervey Bay, a lot of my patients get frustrated at the wait time to see a specialist. And there's the wait times to get that surgery involved. So this is something that we do need to find strategies. We know that across Queensland we have workforce challenges and that's not just about the surgeon. They need anaesthetists, they need nurses, allied health and also hospital staff. So we're looking at ways to assist Queenslanders.
DAVID DOWSETT: So how long are they actually waiting?
DR NICK YIM: That's the big question isn't it? We have a new government and one of their big promises for Queensland is getting accurate, real-time data. So we're really looking forward to looking at that data because we need to know how long people are waiting to see a specialist and how long people are waiting. But we know some patients who are waiting for hips and knees, sometimes they can be waiting more than a year to see a specialist, which is quite concerning.
DAVID DOWSETT: So the detail is not quite there yet. How much is this affected though, by staff and resourcing?
DR NICK YIM: So that comes down to region to region. We do need strategies that are purpose-built for the local area. We know that some areas just can't get enough anaesthetists to anaesthetise patients. So as you can imagine, we can't do a knee replacement even if you might have the surgeon there, as you also need the anaesthetist to put the person to sleep.
DAVID DOWSETT: So do we need to look at how we provide healthcare in the regions a whole lot more closely?
DR NICK YIM: Absolutely. With the Surgical Wait List Roundtable, they’ve thought of different ideas. So there are strategies such as collaborative teams. There are some regions that already have sister hospitals where a Brisbane hospital might travel out to say, a regional hospital, and they take the whole team with them. So that includes the surgeon, some of the operating nurses and anaesthetists as well, and that has been quite effective.
DAVID DOWSETT: So is that what AMA Queensland is calling for?
DR NICK YIM: What we are calling for is purpose-built strategies designed for each particular area. So a strategy that might be working in Mount Isa might not be the same strategy that works in say, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay. It's just consulting with the staff to see what the deficiencies are and work with what we've got.
DAVID DOWSETT: Do you see any sign that the new LNP government has this close to the top of the list of things to do?
DR NICK YIM: Surgical wait lists, this was part of their election priorities, getting data. So we are really optimistic moving forward that we can get purpose-built data and make it more efficient services in our hospital system.
DAVID DOWSETT: All right. Let's hope there's some action on that very soon. Dr Nick Yim, thanks very much.
DR NICK YIM: Thanks, David. Really appreciate it.
