Waiting times at NSW emergency departments - live updates on website

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDJul 7 2011

Health Minister Jillian Skinner launched the website emergencywait.com.au yesterday that tracks NSW emergency departments. The state government said its new website was about providing open, honest and transparent information to the public. A website that would be welcome but more resources are needed first to reduce waiting times said opposition health spokesman Andrew McDonald.

The website provides data, updated every 15 minutes, for 58 public hospitals. The number of patients and average wait times in emergency departments are listed. For example Friday, 8 July 2011 11:46:06 AM for Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, the number of patients assessed by a triage nurse and waiting for treatment was 8. The usual waiting time for less urgent patients around this time varied from 50-60 minutes.

Mrs Skinner said the information would help people get quicker access to care and spread the load between busy emergency departments. She added, “This is real-time information . . . that will help people make more informed decisions about their care and will also provide everyone with a very clear picture of how our emergency departments are coping.” Ms Skinner said it would be expanded “in time” to cover other less severe surgeries. She said parents with ill children could call the Healthdirect hotline on 1800 022 222 and speak to a registered nurse to determine if a child was seriously ill and then choose the hospital with the least amount of waiting time. She explained, “But if (you've) sliced an artery or broken your leg, I recommend calling triple zero immediately and make your way to the nearest emergency department.”

Dr McDonald said of the website that anything that helped deliver patient care was good. However he speculated if the minister would take up a golden opportunity and use the data to direct resources to the area of greatest need. He said, “So knowing the wait time is of some help. But this is not a revolution in emergency department care.”

Ms Skinner said she could not remember what the website cost, but said the running of it would not add to the current health budget because it collated information already collected by hospitals.