11 November 2010 Yet again the frontline workers in health have revealed that the hospital statistics pumped out by State Labor Governments and parroted by the Gillard Labor Government are little more than hot air.

This time it’s the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine. As reported in The Age today a survey of Emergency Department doctors has shown that Victorian hospitals continue to ‘doctor’ the data about patient numbers and treatment times.

Doctors said hospitals in Victoria were admitting patients to ‘virtual beds’ that exist only on computer systems and that accurate waiting times for patients in Emergency Departments were not being reported.

The survey found that “significant data manipulation is still taking place in many health services”.

Shadow Minister for Health Peter Dutton said the report made a mockery of claims from Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon that Labor’s big spend in health and so-called health ‘reforms’ were having an impact.

“Minister Roxon claims that elective surgery waiting lists have been substantially reduced, but in state after state there are constant stories of the unreported waiting lists to get on the official waiting lists which simply means the Minister can’t be believed.”

“As for so-called ‘reforms’ – in the case of the 4 hour rule for waiting time in emergency – doctors say all it will do is put more pressure on hospitals to fudge the figures,” Mr Dutton said.

Mr Dutton said the report had again highlighted Labor’s waste and mismanagement in health.

Media contact – John Wiseman 07 3205 9977 – 0429 983 618