BY Bridie Byrne
MORE than 600 patients are on surgery waiting lists at the Werribee Mercy Hospital.
The Your Hospitals report for the 2008/09 year was released by the State Government last week revealing the current state of the public health system.
Werribee Mercy Hospital made five of the government’s seven key targets as record numbers flooded the emergency room. There were 35,122 patients treated in the emergency department and 628 are still listed for elective surgery.
All resuscitation category 1 patients were seen on arrival, 91 per cent of emergency category 2 patients were seen within 10 minutes, 59 per cent of urgent category 3 patients were seen within 30 minutes and 81 per cent admitted to an in-patient bed within eight hours.
Health Services executive director Deborah Cole said the hospital had continued to respond well to the needs of the community.
“With continued growth in hospital attendance, Werribee Mercy Hospital has worked hard to ensure patients are attended to according to their clinical need,” she said.
Australian Medical Association Victoria president Dr Harry Hemley said the report provides little comfort to thousands and added that public hospital patients should be seen within the clinical ly appropriate times.
