More Elective Surgery For The Capital

Around a thousand more Wellingtonians will get the elective procedures they need in the first half of the year as the region makes use of its share of the first chunk of the additional $200 million for electives announced by Health Minister Pete Hodgson last year.

Capital and Coast District Health Board will receive $1.2 million to perform 1000 extra colonoscopies and additional surgery including vascular, paediatric, ear nose and throat and neurosurgery. More orthopaedic and gynaecological procedures are also planned.

"It is great to see DHBs looking at ways they can utilise the new money for the benefit of their populations,'' Pete Hodgson says.

"A big focus of Capital and Coast's work is improving access to colonoscopies - an area the DHB had fallen behind in - by using a locum and introducing Saturday sessions.

"Colonoscopies are used primarily to investigate possible cancer of the bowel. For a person who has been told they may have cancer, getting timely access to the procedure is hugely reassuring. It can confirm they are free of cancer or, if they have the disease, get treatment.''

As well as the additional colonoscopies, 65 more children will benefit from surgery such as tonsillectomies, grommets and hernia operations. Another 50 patients will get their tonsil or adenoid operations.

District health boards have been working to improve their booking systems to ensure they meet Ministry of Health guidelines about how patients are managed while waiting for an elective service.

"Now we've largely reached the point of not only promising what we're able to deliver, we can now look at where we are falling short and start making up that shortfall. We didn't get to this point overnight and we won't be fixing it overnight either.

"In fact it will take us years of continuing investment to make a real dent in the number of people needing a greater level of care than we're currently able to deliver. That is what the $200 million over four years represents - an investment in boosting the level of care we can deliver."

Ends

© Scoop Media