Only 74% of Northland cancer patients received their first treatment within 31 days in the last quarter. The target is 85%. Photo / 123RF
Only 74% of Northland cancer patients received their first treatment within 31 days in the last quarter. The target is 85%. Photo / 123RF
Doctor vacancies and a lack of appointments in the summer holidays are blamed for health waiting lists increasing in Northland for the likes of cancer treatment.
The state of health services has been laid bare in the latest quarterly report from Health NZ/Te Whatu Ora, which covers performance in the three months to March 31 2024.
Only 62% of patients who needed a specialist assessment were first seen within four months and only 53% of patients who needed a procedure, such as elective surgery, had it within four months. The target for both is 100%.
Te Tai Tokerau also has one of the lowest childhood immunisation rates in the country, with just 66% of children being fully immunised at 2 years old. The target is 90%.
The results in Northland worsened over the quarter for all four of these measures.
Alex Pimm, Health NZ’s group director of operations for Te Tai Tokerau, said progress was being made nationally and in Northland to improve these measures.
Health NZ was formed in 2022 as an amalgamation of the country’s district health boards. This week, the Government sacked the Health NZ board and replaced it with a commissioner, who is charged with making $1.4 billion in savings in the next year while also improving services.
To help address cancer waiting times in Northland, a faster treatment action plan had been launched, Pimm said.
“This plan focuses on ensuring that each patient is tracked through their health pathway and potential barriers reduced, booking for treatment is made as early as possible, diagnostic tests are prioritised appropriately, and national pathways and triage thresholds are used to support clinical decision-making.
“Providing patients with access to timely care for all cancer treatments remains one of Health NZ/Te Whatu Ora’s top priorities.”
In March, Health Minister Shane Reti and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon turned the first sod for Whangārei's new radiation oncology facility. Here, they meet Breast Cancer Support Northland Trust's Ria Kaire, Carol Roland and Dawn Pugh. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Pimm said staff vacancies had affected waiting times for initial cancer treatments but patients were prioritised based on their clinical urgency, so those more urgent were seen more quickly.
There was a particular focus on improving gynaecology treatment in Northland and Auckland, along with recruitment and retention of radiation therapists and oncologists.
“When complete, this facility will provide comprehensive cancer services for the people of Te Tai Tokerau, so they won’t need to travel outside the region for radiotherapy treatment,” Pimm said.
Radiation treatment in Northland has been promised since 2019 and the facility is due to be completed by 2026.
Holidays impact specialist appointments
Opening an extra theatre at Whangārei Hospital is one reason patients waiting more than a year for treatment has fallen. Photo / Tania Whyte
Pimm said several factors had affected the waiting list for initial specialist assessments, including Covid-19 restrictions, a reduction in planned care over the summer holidays and priority being given to more urgent patients, which meant others waited longer than they should.
Nationally, the number of patients waiting for assessment peaked in February and has been falling since March.
Te Tai Tokerau continued to focus on ensuring patients who had been waiting longest were seen by a specialist, Pimm said.
“The district is also implementing other clinical pathways that will result in shorter waiting times, for example, using advanced practitioner physiotherapists to see appropriate patients referred with musculoskeletal problems.”
Demand for surgery growing
Less planned care over the summer also contributed to the high number of people waiting more than four months for their procedures, Pimm said.
Demand for elective surgery was growing overall, because of the ageing population and new technologies that meant more types of treatment were available.
Nationwide, progress had been made on increasing surgery numbers, with a focus on orthopaedics – such as hip replacements – and cataracts.
In Te Tai Tokerau, the aim was to book the longest-waiting patients for treatment, while also ensuring patients with the most critical need received treatment quickly, Pimm said.
“The district has worked to improve theatre utilisation, balance specialist operating time to patient demand and put in place supports for patients to enable them to access treatment more easily.”
Fewer patients wait more than a year
Northland has made progress in one health area: the number of patients waiting more than a year for a procedure has fallen from about 17% in 2022 to 4.1% by March 2024.
The opening of an additional operating theatre in Whangārei Hospital and improved theatre use had helped, Pimm said.
There had also been a focus on booking routine patients in chronological order, supporting high-needs patients to access appointments and reviewing what care could be provided closer to home, including surgeries at Kaitāia Hospital.
Pimm said the “fantastic improvements” were expected to continue as further efforts were made.
Immunisation black mark
Increasing child immunisation rates was a focus across New Zealand, Pimm said.
The trend in Northland showed that, while there was still work to do, progress was being made.
The percentage of 2-year-olds who were fully immunised was 68% in September 2021, 70% in September 2022 and 71% in September 2023. He did not say why this number had since dropped to 66% in March 2024.
He said Health NZ was taking a considered response to encouraging childhood immunisations in Northland by putting whānau in the driver’s seat.
Changes included more consultation with whānau, instead of trying to educate them, and making early contact about babies from the age of four weeks.
Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.
