By JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
Geelong hospital waiting lists are in “crisis”, according to the opposition.
Opposition health spokeswoman Mary Wooldridge said 1093 patients were waiting for elective surgery while only 66 per cent of emergency patients were treated within the recommended time, “significantly below the state average”.
She said other waiting times included almost four months for a first appointment with a specialist, 111 days for an urgent general surgery appointment, 83 for orthopaedic patients, 77 for urology, and almost three and a half years after a “routine referral” to a specialist.
“Daniel Andrews needs to explain to people in the Geelong region how he is going to fix his crisis in waiting times for Victorians needing surgery instead of always looking to blame others,” Ms Wooldridge said.
“Under Daniel Andrews we’re seeing more and more patients in regional Victoria waiting for health care.
“The blow-out in patients waiting for surgery is not surprising given it was Daniel Andrews who thought it was OK to scrap beds and operating theatres at the new Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.”
Health Minister Jill Hennessy said the figure of 1093 patients waiting for elective surgery was 229 lower than a year ago when the coalition was still in power.
“As a member of the former Liberal government that ripped $1 billion from our health system, it beggars belief that Mary Wooldridge would lecture anybody about health funding,” Ms Hennessy said.
“We’re working hard to rebuild our health and ambulance system after four years of Liberal cuts and neglect.
“Already, we’ve invested an additional $20 million in Barwon Health as part of a $2.1 billion investment across our health system in our first budget.
“We’re already seeing improvements in emergency department performance at Barwon Health and for ambulance response times as a result of our investment, and there are also fewer patients waiting for elective surgery compared to the same period under the former Liberal government.“
