Editorial: Last in queue won't do

As at last month more than 950 people were on the waiting list for surgery, almost 100 more than the same time the previous year. Photo: File

What exactly constitutes "high priority"?

An article in Saturday's Rotorua Daily Post revealed the growing number of patients on the Lakes District Health Board waiting list - up nearly 35 per cent since 2010.

As at last month more than 950 people were on the waiting list for surgery, almost 100 more than the same time the previous year.

When it comes to the health dollar it seems the demand is almost always greater than what there's the budget for - and I don't envy those having to juggle in a bid to work it out.

I have no doubt the doctors, nurses and anaesthetists are all doing the very best they can with the resources they've got.

But stories like the one of an 18-year-old who injured her foot six years ago and is still waiting for the operation make you wonder just how long some people have to wait.

The health board has said greater demand is the reason for the jump. Perhaps so, but stories like those shared have been just the kick I've needed to sign my husband up to our health insurance policy.

I have no doubt that if any of us needed urgent care, the public system would serve us well. My fear however, would be just how we'd fare if we were deemed not to be a "high priority" - or worse, "elective".

Thankfully health insurance saw us skip the queue for much-needed grommets when our 15-month-old son had ear infection after ear infection, and was struggling with his talking because he couldn't hear clearly through the build-up.

While other kids can wait month after month for a referral, let alone surgery, the time from doctor's referral to the operating table was less than a fortnight thanks to the private system.

The change was instant. Perhaps not urgent in the eyes of the health system, but in the eyes of a parent it was.

Who knows how long it would have been if we'd waited.