Victoria’s dedicated health workforce continues to deliver world-class care despite high demand – with emergency department patients experiencing the shortest wait times ever.
Quarter three performance data (January-March) released today shows ongoing improvement across the system – with Victorians presenting to emergency departments treated sooner and shorter wait times for planned surgery.
The median wait time in Victoria’s emergency departments is down to 14 minutes – the lowest on record, and a five-minute improvement compared to before the pandemic.
It comes amid continued demand with more than 500,000 presentations in the last quarter – including a rise in complex presentations, with 8,000 more high acuity patients compared to the same time last year.
The Allan Labor Government’s investment in alternative care pathways is helping to ease some of this pressure with more than 95,000 visits to Urgent Care Clinics in the past quarter – half of those presenting said they would have otherwise gone to a hospital emergency department.
Victoria’s hardworking paramedics also continue to face high demand with more than 95,000 time critical ‘lights and sirens’ cases – that is more than 1,000 cases every day and 31.8 per cent higher than pre-pandemic levels.
While work to improve overall response times continues, the latest data shows 65.6 per cent of Code One cases were attended within 15 minutes, an increase from 64.9 per cent in the previous quarter – the average Code One response time also improved, sitting at 15 minutes and 25 seconds.
Introduced by the Labor Government in February, the Standards for Safe and Timely Ambulance and Emergency Care for Victorians will help to improve these figures, with hospitals and Ambulance Victoria collaborating to deliver faster patient care and get paramedics back on the road sooner.
More than 51,000 Victorians underwent planned surgery, with 100 per cent of all Category One patients once again undergoing their procedure within the clinically recommended wait time. Semi-urgent Category Two and non-urgent Category Three patients also received faster care.
Investments to drive down planned surgery waitlists continue to deliver impressive results – including 23 Patient Support Units, two new public surgical centres and 12 Rapid Access Hubs.
As stated by Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Mary-Anne Thomas
“Our dedicated healthcare workforce should be proud of all they are doing – this quarter we have seen significant improvements across the system, even as we face record demand.”
“From faster emergency care, shorter planned surgery wait times and improvements in Code One ambulance response times – our investments in the workforce and alternative urgent care options are delivering better outcomes for patients across Victoria.”
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