Pressure builds on Rockingham hospital

An increase in patients at Rockingham General Hospital’s emergency department has led a prominent authority in the State healthcare system to call for more Government funding.

Quarterly figures for attendance at Rockingham ED are available from the start of 2012, with the last six months of last year busier than at any point in the past four years.

Between July and September last year, 13,782 people visited Rockingham ED, while 13,752 were recorded as entering the facility between October and December 2015.

The figure from the last quarter is a 1.7 per cent increase from the same period in 2014. More than 53,000 people attended Rockingham ED in 2015.

This reflects the trend of more people presenting at EDs in the metropolitan area.

The Australian Medical Association WA said 566,000 patients visited EDs across Perth last year, which is almost 37,700 more than in 2012.

AMA WA president Michael Gannon told theTelegraph that EDs such as Rockingham’s were becoming stretched.

“I think the Rockingham figures, like those across the system, show that demand is ever increasing,” he said.

“The emergency department is the interface between the sickest people in society and the health system. Demands on the health system increase year on year.”

In last year’s Budget, funding for EDs rose 1.5 per cent on the previous year.

Mr Gannon said hospitals such as Rockingham needed a more substantial increase in funding as the cost of care was growing and patients would suffer if more cash was not forthcoming.

“The AMA and the community understand the budgetary situation that the Government finds itself in,” he said.

“But throwing hands in the air and saying that a 1.5 per cent increase is sufficient — that’s not a solution.”

A Rockingham General Hospital spokeswoman said a number of strategies has been put in place to deal with demand.

“We have implemented several initiatives, such as the introduction of a transit lounge for patients and a navigator role in the emergency department at Rockingham to improve the patient journey, experience and access,” she said.

“With paediatric presentations making up almost one third of Rockingham’s annual ED presentations, we have a dedicated paediatric area so parents can feel comfortable knowing their local hospital is well equipped to provide a quality emergency service for children.”

The spokeswoman said the community needed to “respect that emergency departments are for emergencies and there are other options available for non-life threatening conditions.”

Mr Gannon said the “vast majority of presentations to hospital emergency departments are completely appropriate.”

The spokeswoman said a 30 per cent increase in the number of admissions dealt with in four hours or less in the past quarter was a positive indicator of performance.

A Department of Health spokesman said WA hospitals continued to perform well in many key areas and the State led the nation in admitting and discharging ED patients within four hours.