Patients given ‘false hopes’ over surgery waiting times

Thousands of patients are being given unrealistic surgery expectations because of poor waiting list management, the Health Ministry says.

The number of patients told they would definitely be treated but waiting more than the prescribed maximum six months for surgery has grown steadily since last August, from 6790 to 8251.

Ministry elective services team leader Brenda Wills and chief medical adviser David Geddis said the blowout did not mean hospitals were not keeping up with surgery - overall the number of operations was increasing.

It simply showed some health boards were over-committing to patients, giving false hopes of prompt treatment, Ms Wills said.

Other boards were too conservative, leaving those sick enough to get surgery without a clear idea of whether they would get an operation.

Under the waiting list system, district health boards estimate - based on past records - how many operations they can do. If a board can do 1000 knee operations a year, it works out how severe a knee problem must be - the treatment threshold - to put the patient in the top 1000 most needy.

But many boards failed to properly match their ability to operate within six months with their commitments to patients, Ms Wills said.

Some made promises to more patients than they could realistically treat and others did not commit to patients who clearly should qualify for treatment.

In Canterbury, Bay of Plenty, Counties Manukau, Nelson Marlborough and Southland about a third of all patients meeting the treatment threshold are not promised surgery within six months, even though that should be possible.

Dr Geddis said that defeated the purpose of the system, which was supposed to give patients a clear idea of if and when they would get surgery.

- NZPA