Western NSW public hospitals maintain performance through busy quarter

WNSWLHD Chief Executive Mark Spittal praised the district’s entire workforce for their unwavering commitment to their communities, and dedication to providing safe, timely and high-quality care to patients in western NSW.

“Amid another challenging period, the latest BHI Healthcare Quarterly Report shows we have maintained strong performance, and that is a direct result of our staff’s time, effort and commitment to their local communities,” Mr Spittal said.

“Our workforce continues to provide outstanding care despite a challenging quarter, and I want to thank them for their dedication, and ensuring the people of western NSW can get the care they need, when and where they need it.

“These reports show where we are performing well, but also where we can improve. Applying what we learn from reports like this ensures our communities get the best possible care.”

During the second quarter of 2025 there were 51,480 attendances to EDs across the District, including a record volume of patients who presented with an imminently life-threatening condition (triage category 2).

From April to June 2025, there were 5,931 patients who presented with triage category 2 conditions, an increase of 367 presentations or 6.6 per cent compared with the same quarter of last year. 

Despite this increase in demand, almost eight in 10 patients (78 per cent) started their treatment on time which was significantly better than the NSW result (65.7 per cent).  Across all triage categories, the percentage of patients starting their treatment on time was better than the state average.

Similarly, despite increases in emergency presentations, more than eight in 10 patients (82.6 per cent) who arrived by ambulance were transferred to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, an improvement of 3.2 percentage points from the same quarter of 2024.

All patients are seen and triaged on arrival at the ED and, as always, the most seriously unwell patients are treated first. During busy times, people with less urgent conditions can experience longer wait times when there are large numbers of seriously unwell patients being prioritised for emergency care. 

NSW Health has worked with the Australian College of Emergency Medicine to introduce new Hospital Access Targets for local health districts and specialty health networks relating to the time from arrival to leaving the emergency department.  These new targets are designed to support safe patient care and reflect the complexity of patient needs and the diverse pathways patients may take once they present to an ED. 

This is the second Healthcare Quarterly report to reflect the new targets. Due to the change in reporting, the results for the new Hospital Access Targets cannot be compared to the previous April to June 2024 quarter.

The BHI Healthcare Quarterly report shows that 74.3 per cent of patients who presented to Western NSW EDs and did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, were discharged within four hours, which is above the state average of 66.1 per cent.

The District continues to work incredibly hard to ensure patients requiring planned surgery receive their procedures as soon as possible. There were 3,321 planned surgeries performed across the District during the April to June 2025 quarter.

More than eight in 10 patients (81.3 per cent) had their planned surgery on time and almost all urgent planned surgeries (98.6 per cent) were performed on time.

The District reminds the community that free health advice is available 24/7 by calling Healthdirect on 1800 022 222. A nurse will answer your call, ask some questions and connect you with the right care. 

There were 812 babies born in Western NSW Local Health District during the second quarter of 2025.

More information and data related to individual hospitals across the District can be found on the BHI website.