Gisborne hospital working on wait times

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Nearly 2500 people are on the waiting list for a first specialist assessment at Gisborne Hospital.

Interim lead, Hospital and Specialist Services, Tairāwhiti, Lynsey Bartlett, says waiting times for planned care treatment are “longer than we want”.

But there were many reasons for the situation, including workforce shortages and sickness, and the impacts from Covid-19 when a lot of planned care treatment was unable to go ahead.

“Those delays have added to the wait lists.

“We are working hard to improve wait times for people.

“This includes focusing on treating those people who have been waiting the longest.”

A total of 2489 people are on the waiting list for a first specialist assessment.

Half of those have been waiting for more than four months.

The Ministry of Health says those on the waiting list for a first specialist assessment for four months or more numbered far fewer in 2022 and ranged between 355 in October and 582 in December, nationally.

Te Whatu Ora Tairawhiti has a full complement of orthopaedic surgeons, but two have resigned and will leave in the next two months.

Wait times for orthopaedic surgery and longer-stay general surgery conditions can be impacted more than the other surgeries, due to the infection control processes required to ensure post-operative safety for these patients, said Mrs Bartlett.

“I’m sure the community would join us in thanking the orthopaedic surgeons for their contribution to the patients they have served in the community and wish them well for their respective next career steps,” said Mrs Bartlett.

“We are actively recruiting and taking a number of actions to improve our staffing situation, however this is a national and international issue.

“We are pleased with the response to advertising and are currently interviewing for these positions.”