The ABC reports that the eminently predictable flu season has once again taken the ACT health bureaucracy by surprise:
- More than 9,500 people presented to ACT public hospital emergency departments in June, making it the busiest month on record.
Health Minister Katy Gallagher says most of the increase can be attributed to swine flu and there have been 383 confirmed cases in the ACT.
She says if demand does not drop off, then patients will face longer waits in emergency departments, and some elective surgery may have to be postponed to free up beds and operating theatres.
With a growing population we can pretty much expect any given winter month to be a record.