Patients are waiting longer to receive medical care at Auckland’s Middlemore Hospital ED and some are even giving up, National’s Party Health spokesperson Dr Shane Reti says.

Documents obtained recently under the Official Information Act show Middlemore Hospital’s ED waiting times last month are 11 per cent worse than at the same time last year.

“The information shows the number of people being seen at Middlemore ED within the six-hour target has decreased from 79 per cent to 68 per cent in the last year,” says Dr Reti.

“Worryingly there appears to be thousands who self-discharge from ED, presumably because they cannot wait.

“Yesterday Health Minister Andrew Little said ‘in terms of waiting times in ED, it is correct that there are more people waiting longer. That is fact.’

“The Labour Government is failing sick New Zealanders when they need them most.”

When National handed over in 2017, over 90 per cent of patients were seen at Middlemore’s ED within six hours.

“National had to OIA this information because Andrew Little stopped reporting ED wait times last year,” says Dr Reti.

“Andrew Little needs to front up and explain this foolish and short-sighted decision.

“The signals that EDs were under pressure were there but Andrew Little stopped looking and was more interested in restructuring the health system and increasing bureaucrats instead of helping sick New Zealanders who are waiting hours in ED to be seen.

“The Health Minister immediately needs to look at what he can do to assist under pressure EDs around the country, develop a comprehensive after-hours plan with primary care and refocus the $486M on health restructuring towards supporting our exhausted health workforce.”

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