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EMERGENCY

In an emergency, always call triple zero (000) for an ambulance. Ambulances are the safest way to be assessed, treated and transported to the right hospital for the care you need.

Triple zero (000) is a free call from any phone, mobile or phone box.

For less severe but still urgent situations, go to an Emergency Department.

There are 12 public hospital Emergency Departments in Northern NSW Local Health District and they are all available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Emergency departments are located at:

Casino Hospital emergency department entrance with driveway in foreground
Published: 06 Sep 2023

Public hospitals across Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) continued to perform amid sustained high activity throughout the second quarter of this year, according to the latest Bureau of Health Information Healthcare Quarterly report April to June 2023.  

Chief Executive for Northern NSW Local Health District, Tracey Maisey, said the District has made significant progress on reducing planned surgery wait lists throughout the second quarter of 2023.

“A key focus for the District is ensuring people on the planned surgery wait list whose surgeries are overdue receive their procedures as soon as possible,” Mrs Maisey said.

“Over a year, we have reduced that list by over 50 per cent, with 793 people waiting longer than clinically recommended for a planned surgery at the end of June 2023, compared with 1,606 at the end of June 2022.

“A total of 3,676 planned surgeries were performed across the region throughout the quarter, which is an increase of 8.1 per cent, or 274 procedures, when compared with the same quarter last year. 

“Almost all urgent planned surgery (95.8 per cent) was performed on time in the second quarter in 2023.”

Any patients who feel their condition has deteriorated while waiting for their procedure are encouraged to contact their treating doctor for a clinical review. 

From April to June 2023, there were 54,626 attendances to NNSWLHD emergency departments. 

More than seven in 10 patients (73.5 per cent) started treatment on time, which is better than the NSW state average (65.8 per cent). 

Almost eight in 10 patients (78.5 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, which is also better than the state average (74.1 per cent). 

The majority of patients (72.6 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours, also better than the NSW average (56.7 per cent).

“We want to make sure that patients are being seen as quickly as they can be in our hospitals, but we also know that many patients could receive more appropriate care in other settings,” Mrs Maisey said. 

“Around half (49.4 per cent) of all presentations to our EDs this quarter were for the least urgent triage categories four and five. 

“We continue to remind everyone to support us by saving emergency departments and ambulances for saving lives. If an illness or injury is not serious or life-threatening, we encourage people to call Healthdirect Australia on 1800 022 222, for a 24-hour telephone health advice.”

INDIVIDUAL HOSPITAL RESULTS 

BALLINA DISTRICT HOSPITAL had 4,440 ED attendances during the quarter. The majority of patients (70.7 per cent) started their treatment on time. More than seven in 10 patients (77.1 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours. More than eight in 10 patients (83.4 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark. 

BYRON CENTRAL HOSPITAL had 5,304 ED attendances throughout the second quarter of 2023. The vast majority of patients (85.5 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (78.6 per cent). Nearly all patients (96 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (93.9 per cent). More than eight in 10 patients (80.4 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours of arriving, which is also better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (79 per cent). 

CASINO & DISTRICT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL had 3,538 ED attendances in the quarter. Nearly all patients (95.7 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (93.9 per cent).  The vast majority of patients (85.8 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours of arriving, which is also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (79 per cent). 

GRAFTON BASE HOSPITAL had 6,942 ED attendances during this quarter. Almost seven in 10 patients (69 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours, which is better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (62.2 per cent). Almost 9 in 10 patients (87.6 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, also better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (85.6 per cent).

LISMORE BASE HOSPITAL had 9,931 ED attendances during the quarter. The majority of patients (56.1 per cent) started their treatment on time. The majority of patients also left the ED within 4 hours of arriving (53.2%), which is in line with the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (52.9 percent).  Seven in 10 patients (70.3 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark.

MACLEAN DISTRICT HOSPITAL had 3,733 ED attendances during the quarter. More than eight in 10 patients (81.1 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (78.6 per cent). Almost nine in 10 patients (87.9 per cent) left the ED within 4 hours, which is significantly better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (79 per cent). Nearly all patients (91.7 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark. 

MURWILLUMBAH DISTRICT HOSPITAL had 4,749 ED attendances during the quarter. The vast majority of patients (84.2 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is significantly better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (69.8 per cent). More than eight in 10 patients (83.7 per cent) left the ED within four hours of arriving, which is also significantly better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (62.2 per cent). Almost all patients (95.2 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, which is also better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (85.6 per cent).

THE TWEED HOSPITAL had 13,846 ED attendances during the quarter. More than eight in 10 patients (80.6 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is significantly better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (61.1 per cent). Seven in 10 patients (70.2 per cent) left the ED within four hours of arriving, which is also better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (52.9 per cent).