Australians Waiting Twice as Long for Elective Surgery

‘The data are clear, the ability of our public hospital system to treat patients on time is falling,’ the report states.

A view of the Gold Coast Hospital in Queensland, Australia on July 4, 2007. Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Australians undergoing elective surgery, or planned surgery, are now waiting twice as long as they did 20 years ago as emergency departments continue to grapple with the logjam in emergency departments.

For instance, the median wait time for elective surgery has reached a record high of 49 days, up from 27 days in 2001-2002, according to the Australian Medical Association’s (AMA) public hospital report card (pdf) published on April 19.