A dedicated Saturday surgery list for patients requiring urgent care could also help the Southern District Health Board ensure it hits its elective surgery targets. This week’s hospital advisory committee meeting heard while acute surgery was bulk-funded as part of the health board’s base funding, elective, or planned, surgery funding was ‘‘earned’’. And in Dunedin, while the number of urgent cases was stable, there was a higher rate of acute surgeries leading to cancellations of Monday-to-Friday planned surgeries, specialist services executive director Patrick Ng said. But the board had a target that, if missed, could technically put at risk the full amount of $25million it received for elective surgeries. The board was 50 case weights ahead of its year-to-date plan, and the work was being managed ‘‘very carefully’’.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 04, 2020 15:33 UTC