Increased Waiting For Surgery

Press, Volume C, Issue 29630, 28 September 1961, Page 14

Increased Waiting For Surgery

The time of ‘ waiting for patients on the North Canterbury Hospital Board’s surgical waiting list increased markedly between April and August, according to figures released by the medical superintendent-in-chief (Dr. T. Morton) at a meeting of the board yesterday. At August 16. the list stood at about 3350 persons, he said. He detailed the time of waiting for various specialties. In many cases, this had lengthened by months or even years as compared with the time quoted for April in his annual report, which was received at yesterday’s meeting.

Women orthopaedic patients now have to wait about three years and a half for attention. and men about three years. Children are dealt with In about 18 months. “These waiting lists are saddest of all," Dr. Morton commented. The general waiting time in April was one to two years. Adult male genital and urinary patients could expect to wait 12 months from August, women nine months.

and children five months. The over-all April figure was seven to eight months. Children with eye troubles had a waiting time of 18 .months from August, compared with eight months in April. Women had to wait 16 months instead of 12 months, but the waiting time for men was reduced over the period, from 12 to six months. Dr. Morton referred particularly to the children, most of whom were in need of squint corrections. “These should be done as soon as possible; they should not have to wait for more than a year," he said. In general surgery, only the children had no waiting list in August. (The April list did not separate children from adults.) Women's general surgery took 15 months as from August, as against 12 from April, while the waiting time for men’s surgery was static at six months. Ear, nose. and throat patients could expect a waiting time of two years from August, compared with up to 18 months from April. The waiting time for gynecological surgery was one year in April and is about the same now.

In April, there was no waiting list for thoracic surgery. Dr. Morton had no figures for this specialty for the present time, but he thought there were few. if any. patients waiting. The director of surgery (Mr W. H. Bremner), who prepared the surgical section of Dr. Morton's report, suggested in the report that an efficient casualty and receiving ward, which would keep minor cases out of in-patient beds, would help to shorten the waiting list. The board's chairman (Dr. L. C. L. Averill), speaking to the report at the meeting, said that only the completion of the Princess Margaret Hospital would help to get the state of the waiting list improved. “I am sure we have the support of the whole of North Canterbury in pressing the Health Department to allow us to go ahead with this with all urgency.” he said.