Some Wollongong residents are waiting over 17 months for serious operations such as knee and hip replacements as the city's hospital struggles to get through its backlog of elective surgery.
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More than 1800 elective procedures were performed at Wollongong Hospital from October to December 2020 according to new data, however 2755 patients remained on the waiting list by year's end.
Concerningly, just 20 per cent of non-urgent surgery was done on time in the quarter - down 46.5 percentage points compared to the same period in 2019.
The median wait for non-urgent procedures was 14 months; for many patients that blew out to 17 months.
Bureau of Health Information senior director Hilary Rowell said its latest Healthcare Quarterly report revealed that the government's suspension of all non-urgent surgery had had a major impact in Wollongong.
"All non-urgent and some semi-urgent surgery was suspended at the end of March due to the pandemic, and that gradually lifted from May," she said. "That had an inevitable impact on waiting times at all hospitals.
"However at Wollongong the typical patient waited more than 14 months for non-urgent surgery in the last quarter which was longer than any other hospital of a similar size in NSW.
"The waiting list didn't grow by much, yet the waiting times did. However it's important to note that almost all (99.9 per cent) of patients who needed urgent surgery got that surgery on time."
Across the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District just over 3400 elective procedures were carried out from October to December. More than double that number - 7231 - were left on the waiting list by December 31.
Shoalhaven Hospital also struggled under the pressure - elective surgeries were down by 10 per cent over the period, and only six in 10 patients underwent their operations on time. Meantime the waiting list blew out by nearly 36 per cent - to 2341 - by the end of the quarter.
Shellharbour Hospital was one that fared well during the quarter, with a 26 per cent increase in elective surgeries, and more than 90 per cent of those done within recommended timeframes.
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"The arrival of the pandemic undoubtedly caused shockwaves across the system, with no hospital unaffected," Ms Rowell said.
"Whether it was the lockdown imposed on the population which meant emergency departments were far less busy, or the suspension of some elective surgery which had an impact on waiting lists, and times.
"In the Illawarra Shoalhaven, there was some progress by the end of 2020, and some areas where challenges remain to be addressed."
However Labor's Health spokesman, Keira MP Ryan Park, said the government can't hide behind the impact of COVID-19 anymore.
"These figures are proof we have a healthcare system that is under continued pressure. From Wollongong to Shellharbour and the Shoalhaven, all three major hospitals in my region are under resourced and struggling to cope with increased demand," he said.
"Quarter after quarter, we have seen blowouts and backlogs and nothing being done to address it. We need urgent action to address this crisis, there must be no excuses and no delays."
Shellharbour MP Anna Watson added: "Enough is enough, the government must take urgent action to address the elective surgery backlog.
"Even when the new Shellhabour Hospital is built, it will still take years to alleviate pressure on the local public health system, which is already struggling to cope with the region's booming population."
ISLHD Executive Director Clinical Operations Margaret Martin said the district continued to focus on reducing surgery waiting lists impacted by the temporary pause in some elective surgeries.
"(Across the district) almost all urgent elective surgery was performed on time (99.3 per cent) and 71.3 per cent of all procedures, also encompassing semi-urgent and non-urgent surgery, were performed on time," Ms Martin said.
"The district continues to prioritise non-urgent surgeries delayed by COVID-19, both within our hospitals as well as through an ongoing arrangement with five private providers to undertake public elective surgery and endoscopy procedures."
Ms Martin said Wollongong and Shellharbour Hospital surgery theatres were both now functioning at their pre-COVID operating capacity.
In the 2020-21 budget, the NSW Government invested an extra $458.5 million to fast-track elective surgeries delayed as a result of the Federal Government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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