Fewer elective surgery patients at Bendigo Health are undergoing operations within recommended time frames, although the most urgent surgeries are all being performed within 30 days.
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The latest figures show 71 per cent of patients within the ‘category two’ urgency category underwent surgery within the recommended 90 days in 2016-17.
This represented a smaller proportion than the average for other similar hospitals, which sat at 86 per cent.
It was also a drop from the previous year, when 77 per cent of Bendigo Health category two patients were admitted within 90 days.
Between the years, there was a 1 per cent increase in the number of patients in this category.
There was also a slight decrease in the proportion of patients in category three who were admitted within the recommended 365 days, from 92 per cent in 2015-16 to 90 per cent in 2016-17.
This was again lower than the average for other similar hospitals, which was 93 per cent.
The hospital saw an 8.4 per cent increase in the number of category three patients in 2016-17.
But the hospital performed better than others when it came to the most urgent surgeries, which should be performed within 30 days.
All patients within this category were admitted within the recommended time frame, continuing the hospital’s record of 100 per cent for at least the past six years.
It was also better than the peer group average, which was 97 per cent.
A Bendigo Health spokesperson said the organisation placed “great importance” on ensuring patients requiring urgent treatment received it within the recommended time period.
“It is a testament to the work and dedication of our surgical, theatre and booking staff that we are able to achieve this,” the spokesperson said.
“Bendigo Health has expanded surgical activity, taking advantage of the increased availability of theatre space and time in the new Bendigo hospital."
Median waiting times for operations performed by cardio-thoracic, eye, gynaecological, orthopaedic, plastic and urological surgeons all fell from 2015-16 to 2016-17.
The number of cardio-thoracic surgeries rose by 123 per cent, from 13 to 29, urological operations rose by 8.3 per cent, and there was a 17.7 per cent increase in the number of operations performed by an eye surgeon.
Meanwhile, the median waiting times for surgeries by ear, nose and throat and general surgeons rose, by 18 and 22 per cent respectively. This was despite a decrease in the number of ear, nose and throat surgeries.
The longest median waiting time was for orthopaedic surgery, at 73 days.
