Patients who attended emergency departments (EDs) in Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) during the COVID-19 pandemic have rated health staff and the care they received highly.

The latest Bureau of Health Information’s Emergency Department Patient Survey provides a snapshot of the experiences of 2247 patients who attended NNSWLHD’s EDs from July 2021 to June 2022. During this period, more than 210,500 people attended EDs across the District.

Four of Australia’s leading education institutions have formed an innovative collaboration with the Northern NSW Local Health District to grow and train the next generation of skilled healthcare workers and pave the way for improved health outcomes in Northern NSW.

Public hospitals across Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) continue to improve emergency department performance, despite record attendances and more complex admissions to emergency departments.

The latest Bureau of Health Information (BHI) Healthcare Quarterly report (October – December 2022) shows there was a record 56,393 attendances to NNSWLHD EDs, including 6,617 by patients with an imminently life-threatening condition (triage category 2) – also the highest number of patients in this category since BHI began reporting.

Northern NSW Local Health District has announced the appointment of Peter Carter as Chair, joining several new members on the District Board.

Mr Carter joined the Board in 2019 and served as Deputy Board Chair from 2021.

Health facilities in Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) at Lismore, Grafton and Maclean are reopening their doors to volunteers, offering a variety of new roles that support health staff and improve the experience of patients and visitors.

NNSWLHD Chief Executive, Wayne Jones said 12 months of planning had gone into considering how the health service could maximise volunteering across the District.

North Coast Population and Public Health is encouraging the community to stay on alert and get tested, with a sharp rise in syphilis cases reported across the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers regions.

Syphilis remains a significant issue across the NSW North Coast, which is currently experiencing an increase in cases far higher than the five-year average.