Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi has welcomed the latest national health targets results which show Counties Manukau District Health Board is delivering more elective surgery.
Hospital emergency departments are treating patients faster than at any time since the targets began in 2009. Counties Manukau is close to achieving the target with 97 per cent of patients admitted, discharged or transferred from an ED within six hours.
111,794 elective surgeries were performed by DHBs during the quarter – that’s five thousand more surgeries for patients than planned. Counties Manukau was one of the outstanding performers, exceeded the target with 111 per cent.
More local children are also getting immunised. Counties Manukau is on track to meet the target of having 95 per cent of two-year-olds fully immunised by July 2012, recording 93 per cent. This is great for all our children who are now better protected against diseases such as measles and whooping cough.
Counties Manukau continues to provide fast service to cancer patients, by meeting the Government’s target of having all ready-for-treatment patients receiving radiotherapy in less than four weeks.
There’s positive news around smoking too, with 94 per cent of hospitalised smokers in the Counties Manukau DHB area being given advice and help to quit.
This is the first quarter that the new target “More heart and diabetes checks” has been reported. The target is that by July 2012, 60 per cent of the eligible population will have had their cardiovascular risk assessed in the last five years. Counties Manukau DHB has is closing in on that target, with 50 per cent recorded for January to March this year.
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi said the six national health targets are focused and clear, so people can easily gauge how well their DHB is performing.
Counties Manukau DHB’s positive results show the government’s focus on delivering better, sooner, more convenient frontline health services are paying dividends for patients and their families.