New data from Te Whatu Ora has painted a grim picture of New Zealand's health system.
The health agency published a review of their clinical performance metrics this morning, revealing that compared to 2022, in 11 districts, there was a minimum 10% increase in their emergency department length of stay.
Fourteen districts saw an increase in the number of patients waiting for more than a year for treatment.
Nine districts experienced a drop in the percentage of cancer patients who received treatment within thirty one days of diagnosis.
Te Whatu Ora's chief clinical officer Dr Richard Sullivan told Breakfast this morning he's "determined" to fix the wait times.
"It is going to take time to address the patients waiting over 365 days, we have a plan to resolve that by the end of the year."
He said said the primary focus is on patients with "clinical needs" and those who have been on wait lists for more than a year.
Earlier this morning Te Whatu Ora announced it would resume public reporting on key clinical data.
It followed a pause on reporting in March after the health body incorrectly published performance metrics.
Access to critical information such as cancer treatment figures, mental health wait times and emergency department figures will all be publicly available again.
Asked how Te Whatu Ora can prove the latest data is accurate, Sullivan said the review into the inaccurate data has been "really robust".
"A team came up with 28 recommendations, and we've accepted all of those and have already starting working on some of those."
"We want to be transparent, it's really important for our communities that they can see the data, they can see solutions and that we're working towards those solutions."
Asked what his message his to patients on surgery waiting lists who may be suffering, Sullivan said, "We're determined to get this right, we're determined to use the data to create solutions to work as a single system so that we provide better care.
"We know the system is being stretched, we know there are opportunities for us to do a lot better.
"I think we're seeing the change, I think we're seeing the positive movement forward, we're starting to see our districts work more collectively together but I say trust us, you know it's tough but we're determined to do what's right."
SHARE ME