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The AMA 2022 Public Hospital Report Card underscores the necessity of a new funding arrangement between the Commonwealth and States, said AMA (NSW) President, Dr Danielle McMullen.
“The facts and figures in this year’s report card paint an alarming picture – this is what years of underfunding, combined with mounting pressure from population growth and an ageing population looks like,” Dr McMullen said.
The annual report reveals a decrease in performance across several measurements, including hospital beds relative to Australia’s ageing population and longer emergency department and elective surgery wait times.
“NSW is one of the best performing states in the country, but year on year there is a slight decrease in our ability to meet the healthcare standards patients expect and deserve.
“The report reveals a long-term trend that if we fail to address will significantly hinder the care provided to patients in NSW. It also underscores the necessity of a more equitable funding scheme between the Commonwealth and state and territories,” Dr McMullen said.
Across the country, public hospitals are in crisis. The AMA 2022 Public Hospital Report Card shows that since 2008 Australia has lost six public hospital beds for every 1000 people aged over 65 years. Public hospital beds per 1000 people aged 65 years is a key measure of public hospital capacity.
The most recent data from 2019-20, reveals the ratio of total hospital beds for every 1000 people aged 65 and over dropped to 14.9.
The hospital bed ratio has been on a downward trend for 28 years – three decades ago there were more than 30 beds in our public hospitals per 1000 people over the age of 65.
It is expected that by 2035 more than one million will be older than 85 – almost double of what it is today.
According to AMA President, Dr Omar Khorshid, “if we want to save our public hospital system we must act now.”
“Our public hospital capacity must be expanded to meet the demands of a population that is increasing in size, age and suffering from multiple chronic health issues. This needs to be backed by greater investment in primary care, giving GPs the support they desperately need to keep people out of hospital.”
“We have the solution. Our ‘Clear the hospital logjam’ campaign calls for partnership funding for more beds and staff to meet future community demand, with no caps and a more equitable share of funding between states, territories and the federal government.
“We also need to end the blame game that often stifles innovation and to agree on a range of measures to support general practice to deliver the type of care that will help keep people out of hospital and enjoy a better quality of life.
“It’s time politicians recognised the underlying cause of the yearly decline in public hospital performance is the failed hospital funding agreement.
“Which government will be able to say they reversed the decades-long decline in our public hospitals’ performance? Wouldn’t that be a remarkable achievement?”
The AMA’s Clear the Hospital Logjam campaign is aimed at securing a new funding agreement to improve hospital performance, expand capacity, and address avoidable admissions. This includes moving to a more equitable 50-50 funding share between the Commonwealth and states and territories and removing the 6.5 per cent funding cap that constrains the ability of hospitals to meet community demand.
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