New figures show Emergency Department remedies are working, says Stephen-Smith

The performance of Canberra’s public hospital Emergency Departments is on the mend, according to new figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare out today (6 December).

The promising data points to the EDs overcoming chronic problems that had them placed among the worst performing, if not the worst, in the country.

The AIHW data for the 2023-24 financial year shows a turnaround in several key areas that will be a relief to Canberra Health Services and the ACT Government, which have both taken a hammering in recent years over the performance of the ACT’s hospitals generally.

Canberra Health Services has embarked on a series of reforms and this year opened a new, bigger ED in the new Critical Services Building at Canberra Hospital, with a dedicated children’s emergency area, more operating rooms, more treatment spaces and more intensive care beds.

The median ED waiting time in 2023-24 fell to 25 minutes from 36 minutes the year before. In 2020-21 it was 48 minutes.

The proportion of patients seen on time jumped 11 points to 62 per cent, the biggest improvement of any jurisdiction. From 2019-20 to 2021-22, that figure was stuck at 48 per cent before rising to 52 per cent in 2022-23.

Another key measure is the proportion of presentations with a stay of four hours or less, where the patient has been seen, assessed, treated and then either discharged or admitted into a ward within a four-hour time period.

This spiked 8 per cent to 56 per cent, the biggest increase in the country, going from last in the country in the previous financial year to the third-best jurisdiction.

Both Canberra Hospital and the Northside Hospital outperformed their peers on this measure.

In the 90th percentile measure, or the maximum length of time in which nine of 10 patients have completed their ED visit, the stay was eight hours and six minutes, the best result in the past five years and the lowest in the country.

Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said the AIHW data reflected system-wide improvements and investments the government had made across the ACT’s public hospitals to improve waiting times.

“This has included more staff in our emergency departments, opening additional bed capacity across our hospitals and innovations in the way we deliver services,” she said.

“This overall improvement means that Canberrans are accessing more timely care and spending less time in the ED.”

Ms Stephen-Smith said improving ED performance had been a key focus for Canberra Health Services and paid tribute to hardworking staff across the ACT’s public hospitals, from the ED to inpatient wards and outpatient teams.

“I’m particularly pleased to see the improvements at North Canberra Hospital, which transitioned to CHS in July 2023,” she said.

Ms Stephen-Smith said the results were all the more pleasing considering they coincided with the ACT experiencing the biggest percentage increase in emergency department presentations.

There were 156,029 presentations to ACT EDs in 2023-24, 7 per cent more than the previous financial year, the biggest percentage increase in the country.

Ms Stephen-Smith said the more than $660 million Canberra Hospital Expansion last term and the establishment of an Operations Centre at Canberra Hospital were making a difference.

“The Operations Centre at Canberra Hospital specifically focuses on the patient journey through the public health system, recognises any early congestion that might slow down a patient’s health care journey, and intervenes early to relieve that pressure,” Ms Stephen-Smith said.

“The initial focus was on emergency care, and we are seeing the improved performance in this area. CHS will continue to focus on planned care, like outpatient wait lists, elective surgery and chronic care.”

AIHW also released the data on elective surgery for the 2023-24 financial year, which continues to be a key challenge and focus for Canberra Health Services.

“The government made further investments in the 2024-25 ACT Budget to deliver more elective surgeries and run additional operating hours for emergency surgery, which in turn increases capacity for elective surgeries,” Ms Stephen-Smith said.