The State Government has followed through with its promise of publishing emergency department wait times across more than 30 Queensland hospitals, including the Gold Coast.
The Open Hospitals portal has officially gone live, giving Queenslanders the chance to see what’s happening in the state’s health system for the first time ever.
The website updates every 15 minutes, revealing how many patients are waiting to be treated and the median wait time in our emergency departments.
Health Minister Tim Nicholls said the data provides openness and transparency to Queenslanders in need of medical care.
“Today the Crisafulli Government is delivering a fresh start for Queensland, launching the state’s first real-time health data, with our Open Hospitals portal,” Minister Nicholls said.
“Patients and our hardworking frontline doctors and nurses have made it clear they want more insight into how our health system is performing and Queensland Health Open Hospitals website delivers it.
“The community has access to information that tells them how critical infrastructure in the health system is performing and which will help them to make informed decisions about their healthcare options.
“There are no silver bullets to fix the multiple challenges our health system faces, but delivering transparency about what’s going on inside our hospitals is the first step to healing the Health Crisis.
AMA Queensland President Dr Nick Yim has welcomed the move.
“This is a welcome first step in modernising our health system and something AMA Queensland has urged the government to do for years, including in our Ambulance Ramping Roundtable and Surgical Wait List Roundtable Action Plans,” Dr Yim said.
“We cannot improve hospital performance without transparent and up-to-date information.
“Real-time data allows the public to see where delays are occurring so they can make informed decisions about when and where to seek treatment.
“It also has the potential to allow clinicians to better manage hospital resources, diverting them where they are needed most”.
However, he said the portal still has “a long way to go” if it’s going to provide a full picture of the situation.
“Clinicians on the floor need real-time bed availability data and it must be integrated with systems like inpatient services, outpatient appointments and aged care vacancies,” Dr Yim said.
“We also need to see other key metrics like the number of patient presentations and discharges.
“We look forward to working with the government to expand the metrics and other information available in the portal so it can truly help transform our health system for the future.”
The Open Hospitals website can be accessed here.
