Waikato Hospital delays continue

Low-risk patients have been waiting up to six hours at Waikato Hospital's emergency department as staff deal with almost 200 patients a day, many afraid they have the deadly meningococcal disease.

Growing awareness about the disease, which has killed four people nationwide this year, has meant a huge increase in numbers of patients arriving at the emergency department.

Many of them had flu but thought they had the fatal disease because they had a stiff neck and sore muscles.