State News

Health crisis gets worse

13 December 2023

Scathing Auditor-General report reveals record-breaking failures

A damning new report has exposed the dire state of the Queensland Health Crisis with unwanted records broken for ramping, ambulance lost hours and surgery waitlists.

It comes amid the chaos and crisis that has engulfed the State Labor Government for the past nine years and the refusal to acknowledge the full extent of a health system in freefall.

The Auditor-General Report revealed:

  • Worst ambulance ramping for a financial year at 43%
  • Ambulances spent more time ramped than any other financial year: 160,000 hours
  • Specialist Outpatient targets lowest of the last eight years
  • A third of hospital and health facilities are due to be replaced within a decade as maintenance requirements aren’t being met

Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said the Auditor-General report was grim reading for Queensland patients and frontline staff in the middle of the Queensland Health Crisis.

“This is a catastrophic failure by the State Labor Government,” Mr Crisafulli said.

“Labor has never understood the enormity of the Queensland Health Crisis, and this report has unearthed just how strained the system has become.

“While Labor Ministers were plotting to undermine the Premier, Queensland Health was falling apart.

“Queenslanders have recently seen the heartbreaking and fatal consequences of ambulance ramping and until the Labor Government accepts the Queensland Health Crisis is real and takes responsibility for it, more families will fall victim of a system under immense pressure.

“Only the LNP has the right priorities for Queensland’s future and that includes easier access to health services. We’ve also put solutions on the table to heal the Queensland Health Crisis including better resources, better triaging, sharing data in real-time and putting doctors and nurses back in charge to improve patient care.

“The State Government must start listening to our solutions and trust the experts.”

Shadow Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Ros Bates said Queensland Health had deteriorated because of the chaos and crisis within the State Labor Government.

“This scathing report has revealed the full extent of ambulance ramping, waitlist blowouts, missed targets and construction delays of satellite hospitals,” Ms Bates said.

“There are multiple fires burning through Queensland Health.

“Queenslanders can’t trust the State Labor Government to fix the Queensland Health Crisis.

“Shannon Fentiman promised the world to Queenslanders, but the results are in – and she’s failed spectacularly.

“After nine years, three terms and four Health Ministers, the State Labor Government has created the Queensland Health Crisis and they don’t have a plan to fix it.

“As a registered nurse and a former Hospital Administrator, I know our dedicated frontline staff are exhausted and work double shifts to keep the health system on the rails and ensure patient care is the top priority.”