Latest news with #ElectiveBoost
RNZ News
02-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Health Minister announces Elective Boost programme
The Health Minister, Simeon Brown, said the Elective Boost programme would cut surgery waiting times as 21,000 more elective procedures are funded over the next year. He spoke to Charlotte Cook. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
01-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
21,000 more operations will cut surgery waiting times
Health Minister Simeon Brown is touting the success of the Elective Boost programme. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi The government says surgery waiting times will be cut as it funds 21,000 more elective procedures over the next year. Health Minister Simeon Brown said the Elective Boost programme will cover operations such as hip and knee replacements and cataract surgeries. He said some will be delivered through the public health system and some in the private sector. Many of the procedures will take place in dedicated elective facilities, including Manukau Health Park, Tōtara Haumaru on the North Shore, and Burwood Hospital in Christchurch. Brown said the additional money would go towards reaching and exceeding the government's target of 67 percent of patients being treated within four months. "We're making the health system work smarter, using both public hospitals and private providers in a coordinated national effort. New Zealanders don't care who does the operation - they just want it done and done quickly," the Minister said in a media release. There had been strong early results, he said, citing these achievements: As part of "a joined-up approach", hold-ups would be removed providing some certainty for patients and "unlocking capacity" in the health system. The long-term goal was to treat 95 percent of patients within four months by 2030, he said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
01-07-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Elective Boost To Get More Kiwis Out Of Pain
Minister of Health Thousands more New Zealanders will get the procedures they need faster, with the Government today announcing 21,000 more elective procedures over the next year through its Elective Boost programme, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. 'With over 215,000 procedures set to go ahead over the next year – over 21,000 more than previously planned – wait times will reduce, helping more Kiwis access life-changing operations like hip and knee replacements and cataract surgeries sooner. 'Our Government is focused on real delivery. For patients stuck on surgical waitlists, that means getting their procedures faster, no matter where they live or who provides it. 'We're making the health system work smarter, using both public hospitals and private providers in a coordinated national effort. New Zealanders don't care who does the operation – they just want it done and done quickly.' Many of the procedures will be delivered in Health New Zealand's dedicated elective facilities, including Manukau Health Park, Tōtara Haumaru on the North Shore, and Burwood Hospital in Christchurch. Others will be completed by private hospitals under new national agreements. The next phase of the Elective Boost follows strong early results: More than 12,764 procedures delivered to 1 June, outpacing the 10,579 target set for 30 June. The majority of procedures delivered have been for people waiting longer than four months for treatment. Statements of work issued to 60 private providers to deliver surgery at consistent national rates. 'We're taking a joined-up approach to procedure delivery. That means removing hold-ups, providing certainty, and unlocking capacity across the system,' Mr Brown says. 'This is how we start to fix the waitlist crisis that grew under the previous government. Too many Kiwis have been waiting in pain for procedures that could transform their lives – a tradie needing a shoulder operation to get back to work, a nana needing cataract surgery to see her grandkids clearly, or a child waiting months for tonsils to be removed. We're turning that around.' Mr Brown says the long-term goal is to treat 95 per cent of patients within four months by 2030 as part of the Government's health targets. 'Our Government is investing $30 billion a year in health, and we're backing that investment with a relentless focus on delivery. We are ramping up capacity in public hospitals, partnering with private providers in a more strategic way, and most importantly, we are getting Kiwis the care they need,' Mr Brown says. 'We've already delivered thousands of extra procedures through the Elective Boost, and now we're building on that with thousands more to put patients first.'
NZ Herald
01-07-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Elective surgery boost: 21,000 more operations as govt pays private hospitals more
An extra 21,000 operations will be performed over the next year as the Government spends more on private hospitals. Health Minister Simeon Brown is announcing the changes this morning as part of the Government's Elective Boost programme. You can watch a livestream of the announcement above. Brown said the
Otago Daily Times
17-06-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Health figures improve, more work to do: minister
More cancer patients are receiving their first treatment within 31 days, more children are getting immunised, and more patients are being admitted, discharged, or transferred from an emergency department within six hours. But the proportions of patients waiting longer than four months to see a specialist or receive elective treatment have slightly increased. Health New Zealand has released its latest quarterly update on the government's health targets, for Q3 2024-25. The government has set health targets focused on cutting down wait times, increasing childhood immunisations, and faster cancer treatments by 2030. The targets, set in 2024, include: 90% of patients to receive cancer treatment within 31 days of the decision to treat (milestone of 86% in 2024-25) 95% of children immunised at 24 months of age (milestone of 84% in 2024-25) 95% of patients to be admitted, discharged, or transferred from an emergency department within six hours (milestone of 74% in 2024-25) 95% of patients waiting less than four months for a first specialist assessment (milestone of 62% in 2024-25) 95% of patients waiting less than four months for elective treatment (milestone of 63% in 2024-25) The latest update shows: 84.6% of patients receiving cancer treatment 31 days of the decision to treat (up from 83% in Q3 2023-24) 79.3% of children immunised at 24 months of age (up from 76.9% in Q3 2023-24) 74.2% of patients admitted, discharged, or transferred from an emergency department within six hours (up from 70.1% in Q3 2023-24) 58.2% of patients waiting less than four months for a first specialist assessment (down from 59.2% in Q3 2023-24) 57.3% of patients waiting less than four months for elective treatment (down from 59.3% in Q3 2023-24) Health Minister Simeon Brown said there was still more work to do, but it was a step in the right direction. "Restoring performance and accountability takes time, and we remain focused on continuing to deliver improvements," he said. Brown acknowledged the percentage of patients waiting longer for elective procedures and first specialist assessments had increased, but said the number of patients waiting had dropped by 1891 between January and March 2025. "In the last quarter alone, more than 48,000 elective procedures and 167,000 first specialist assessments were completed. That's thousands of New Zealanders getting back to work, returning to everyday life, and regaining their quality of life," he said. Some patients have been able to access the Elective Boost policy, which sees Health New Zealand partner up with private hospitals to expand surgical capacity for procedures like hip and knee replacements, cataract surgeries, hernia repairs, tonsillectomies, and ear operations. More than 9500 procedures have been delivered as part of the policy, with Brown saying the majority were those who had been waiting longer than four months. The government recently announced plans to bake the health targets into legislation, requiring all health strategies to give effect to them. Law and order targets well ahead of schedule The government's law and order targets are well ahead of schedule, with one achieved and the other nearing completion. Quarterly data for the three months to February showed the number of adults experiencing violent crime fell below the target of 165,000 people or fewer, to 157,144. It marks achievement of the goal of a reduction of 20,000 people being victim of an assault, robbery, or sexual assault offence. The other law and order target of reducing youth offending by 15% was also on track, with the number of offenders - 942 - closing in on the target of 900 or fewer, and accounting for a 13% decrease. Both targets had a deadline for completion by 2030. Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said the government had "wasted no time overhauling a culture of excuses left behind by the last administration", saying there was more work to do but the results were a sign the government was headed in the right direction. "We've provided police and the courts with extra tools to go after gangs, brought back a revised three strikes sentencing regime, restored real consequences for crime by limiting sentence discounts, and scrapped Section 27 reports. We do, however, expect the data to remain volatile, and there's still more work to do to continue driving these numbers down." Children's Minister Karen Chhour said the government had trialled "bold new responses to this long-standing issue" of youth offending, including data-driven regional responses. "We continue to want better for, and from, these young people. This is a strong start, but we're committed to sustained and meaningful success for our communities," she said. Reporting from the Herald shows Ministry of Justice advice suggests the drop in violent crime over the past year reflects a return to trends seen between 2018 and 2022.
