Waiting times for surgery (Part 1)
Why am I waiting so long for surgery? I've heard that I will wait longer at Hospital X compared to Hospital Y. Why can't my doctor do my operation in another hospital?
There are several factors which will determine how long you would have to wait for your surgery. In this post, I would focus on Elective versus Emergency surgery.
Elective vs Emergency
In NSW, all surgery is classified into 2 major categories. They are Elective surgery or Emergency surgery.
According to the NSW Ministry of Health Guidelines, the definitions of the two categories are as follows [1]:
The majority of Emergency surgery is done at public hospitals. More surgeries are classified as Elective as compared to Emergency [2].
If you are in a situation where you are very sick and need Emergency surgery, you would get your surgery done alot quicker than if you were less sick. For example, if you fracture your hip or have appendicitis, chances are you do need an Emergency surgery.
In most hospitals, the operating theatre manager will have allocated a given amount of time each day with enough theatre space and staffing to undertake Emergency. If the allocated time is insufficient, Elective surgery will likely be cancelled to make way for the critically unwell patient. This decision of who would be cancelled can be made by the surgeon or the nurse manager.
See also...
Waiting times for surgery (Part 2) - Public vs Private Hospitals
Waiting times for surgery (Part 3) - Wait list category
References[1] NSW MoH Emergency Surgery Guidelines
[2] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
There are several factors which will determine how long you would have to wait for your surgery. In this post, I would focus on Elective versus Emergency surgery.
Elective vs Emergency
In NSW, all surgery is classified into 2 major categories. They are Elective surgery or Emergency surgery.
According to the NSW Ministry of Health Guidelines, the definitions of the two categories are as follows [1]:
Elective surgery
|
Emergency surgery
|
"Surgery which, although deemed necessary by the treating clinician, in their opinion can be delayed for at least 24 hrs."
|
"An emergency procedure is one being performed on a patient whose clinical acuity is assessed by the clinician as requiring the surgery within 24 hrs or in less than 72 hours where the patient is not physiologically stable enough to be discharged from hospital prior to the required surgery. "
|
The majority of Emergency surgery is done at public hospitals. More surgeries are classified as Elective as compared to Emergency [2].
If you are in a situation where you are very sick and need Emergency surgery, you would get your surgery done alot quicker than if you were less sick. For example, if you fracture your hip or have appendicitis, chances are you do need an Emergency surgery.
In most hospitals, the operating theatre manager will have allocated a given amount of time each day with enough theatre space and staffing to undertake Emergency. If the allocated time is insufficient, Elective surgery will likely be cancelled to make way for the critically unwell patient. This decision of who would be cancelled can be made by the surgeon or the nurse manager.
See also...
Waiting times for surgery (Part 2) - Public vs Private Hospitals
Waiting times for surgery (Part 3) - Wait list category
References[1] NSW MoH Emergency Surgery Guidelines
[2] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Comments
Post a Comment