Cancer delays set to linger says Annette King

Shortages of specialist cancer treatment staff at Waikato Hospital cannot be fixed immediately, says Health Minister Annette King.

Cancer patients are waiting up to 18 weeks for first appointments with a specialist at the hospital.

National guidelines say semi-urgent cancer patients must see a specialist within 20 working days.

Cancer specialists at Auckland Hospital will help to ease the long wait for treatment at Waikato, which is due to a shortage of oncology staff.

Ms King said the delays were not acceptable, but the issue was a workforce one.

The Government had tried to address the problem by allocating more money and putting more people in training, she said.

When she became minister 48 radiation therapists were in training. There were now 86.

Specialists had also had pay increases, but cancer service shortages remained.

"It's not a problem you can fix immediately," she said. "We're doing our best. We have to maximise all the services we can."

Ms King said New Zealand would remain vulnerable until it had trained its own workforce.

"The first of our extra numbers of radiation therapists come out next year, so we will see more of them," she said.

"We are retaining more of them, and we are having more success in recruiting overseas, which we have to do.

"We will remain vulnerable ... for another year or 18 months anyway."

Ms King said the Government had a long-term commitment to cancer treatment.

It had developed a cancer development strategy, rather than rely on the market to provide specialists.

National Party health spokeswoman Lynda Scott said the sector was like "a rudderless ship", with no direction or leadership.

"This isn't about us or them, this is about people's lives," she said.

"We have been telling the minister for 18 months that Waikato has the same problems as Auckland, but ... they gave false reassurance."

Waiting times were longer than people were led to believe, Dr Scott said.



Some Waikato cancer patients are to be treated in Auckland, others may have to go to Australia.

Waikato surgeon Ian Campbell said the delays could cost some women their lives, and some were choosing "more mutilating" surgery.

As of last Friday, 20 semi-urgent patients from the Waikato, the Bay of Plenty and the Lakeland regions had waited up to 90 working days to see a specialist.

At the end of July, 65 urgent Waikato patients had waited up to nine weeks for their first appointment with a radiation oncologist.

A further 66 patients had waited up to nine weeks for a medical oncologist.

Waikato specialists see top priority patients - those who might die or have a permanent impairment if not treated within 48 hours - within a day.

This is faster than the guideline of two days.

Over the past year, Waikato patients in the urgent and semi-urgent categories have had to wait at least twice the national guideline.

Once seen by a specialist, the majority of patients - 84 per cent - start radiation therapy within the recommended time of four weeks.

The regional cancer service has three radiation oncologists, but should have six. It has 13 radiation therapists, but should have 24.

Staff are working overtime to ease the delays.

- NZPA

Feature: Our sick hospitals