Patients awaiting elective surgery in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven areas face more delays as a result of the pause on all non-urgent elective surgery at both public and private hospitals that came into effect Monday, January 10.
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The pause on non-urgent elective surgery is expected to put added pressure on a system already struggling to cope.
Specialist surgeons who work at both public and private hospitals in the area have been forced to immediately cancel surgeries as a result of the changes.
Among the surgeries cancelled was an operation due to be performed on Tuesday. The patient had been waiting more than 18 months for the procedure, which had already been rescheduled.
The Mercury has asked Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District (ISLHD) to comment.
The NSW Government announced the pause on non-urgent elective surgery across the state on January 7 as part of a range of "precautionary measures to provide additional support for the health system and community ahead of an anticipated peak in COVID cases later this month".
"To alleviate pressure on the hospital system and staff, we're extending the usual holiday suspension of non-urgent elective surgery through to February and will utilise private hospital capacity where needed, as we did during the Alpha and Delta outbreaks," NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said.
"I want to thank our healthcare workers for their dedication and professionalism, not only now but during two very hard years."
Bans on elective surgery during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a blow out in waiting times.
A specialist surgeon in Wollongong has seen waiting times increase from five to six months to 18 to 24 months in both public and private hospitals in the area.
The latest Bureau of Health Information data released in December showed 2864 elective surgeries were performed in the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District (ISLHD) in the July-September 2021 quarter. That was 694 fewer than the same quarter the previous year, a drop 19.4 per cent.
Of these, 84.4 per cent were performed on time, well below the NSW average of 92.3 per cent, making ISLHD the third worst-performing health district in the state.
Mr Perrottet said NSW was dealing with a "highly transmissible variant but fortunately it appears to be a much less severe form of COVID-19 and our high vaccination rates are clearly helping to keep people safe.
He said the return to some restrictions would allow NSW residents to "continue to live with COVID and manage the pandemic in a measured and considered way".
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Merryn Porter
Journalist with more than 25 years' experience in print and digital media who has covered most news rounds, including health, education, politics (local, state and federal), police and courts, with a special interest in women's and family matters. Highly-skilled interviewer and storyteller.
Journalist with more than 25 years' experience in print and digital media who has covered most news rounds, including health, education, politics (local, state and federal), police and courts, with a special interest in women's and family matters. Highly-skilled interviewer and storyteller.
