Taxpayer expenditure in New South Wales (NSW) is soaring, with approximately $1.2 million spent daily on hospital patients awaiting discharge to aged and disability care. This situation arises from significant waitlists for nursing homes, placing families in difficult positions, increasing vulnerability for frail patients, and straining emergency departments.
The ongoing financial disagreement between the state and Commonwealth governments regarding hospital costs linked to an aging population has intensified the crisis. According to NSW Health Minister Ryan Park, the backlog exposes patients to heightened risks of falls and hospital-acquired infections, resulting in what he described as “bed block” throughout the state’s healthcare system.
Rising Patient Numbers Strain Resources
Recent data indicates that the number of patients in NSW hospitals waiting for discharge to aged care or the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has surged by more than 60% over the past year. At the beginning of March 2024, there were 1,151 aged care and NDIS recipients in public hospitals who had exceeded their expected discharge dates. This figure represents over 5% of the total 21,937 overnight hospital beds across the state.
Minister Park emphasized the implications of this situation, stating, “It absolutely clogs the system up because we can’t get acute patients into beds if we’ve got aged care or NDIS patients stuck in those beds after they should have been discharged.” He highlighted the adverse effects on both patients and families, as well as the burdens placed on healthcare staff who must manage these delays.
In the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District, where Minister Park’s electorate of Keira is located, the situation is particularly severe. A recent analysis revealed that up to 20% of bed days in the district were occupied by aged care residents. This crisis stems from an estimated shortage of over 1,000 residential care places, exacerbating the issue for patients in need of timely care.
Long Wait Times and Patient Impact
A taskforce investigating the matter tracked 1,133 patients who were destined for aged care but found themselves hospitalized instead. The majority of these individuals, around 94%, arrived at hospitals through emergency departments and faced an average hospital stay of 66 days. In one alarming case, a patient waited a staggering 410 days for a suitable placement in aged care.
The implications of these delays extend beyond the healthcare system itself, affecting countless lives. Families grapple with uncertainty as loved ones languish in hospital beds longer than necessary, while healthcare providers face mounting pressures to deliver care to those in immediate need.
As the situation continues to evolve, the urgency for solutions grows. The NSW government, alongside its federal counterpart, must address the underlying issues contributing to this crisis in aged care, ensuring that patients receive the timely support they require and freeing up hospital resources for those with acute medical needs.
