Imagine getting up in the morning and having to make a decision about whether someone will live or die. 

Christchurch surgeons were so outraged by Te Whatu Ora's statement that it was delivering 73% of planned care surgeries in Canterbury in the year to date, that they have broken ranks and called BS on that. 

Remember back in 2022, when then Health Minister Andrew Little said EDs are “totally safe”. “For the month of August over 100,000 patients went to an ED. Some people are waiting longer for treatment … they're not neglected and ignored, they get care and attention until their bed is freed up or they get the treatment that they need.” 

The head of ED surgeons said he nearly swerved off the road when he heard that. 

Clinicians said they had serious concerns about system-wide hospital issues decades in the making, which they say are worsening as the sector grapples with widespread staffing shortages. Delays in treatment increase the likelihood of a mistake, they say. 

Now we have the DHB by another name saying surgeries are being performed at a rate of 73 per cent - the surgeons themselves are saying its closer to 50% or less.

They say that they are having to go from crisis to crisis, that they've been cancelling cancer surgeries, that they're having to choose who has the worst cancer and who won't survive unless there's surgical intervention - that's a terrible strain on professionals and will inevitably take its toll.

Imagine getting up in the morning and having to make a decision about whether someone will live or die. 
Christchurch surgeons were so outraged by Te Whatu Ora's statement that it was delivering 73% of planned care surgeries in Canterbury in the year to date, that they have broken ranks and called BS on that. 
Remember back in 2022, when then Health Minister Andrew Little said EDs are “totally safe”. “For the month of August over 100,000 patients went to an ED. Some people are waiting longer for treatment … they're not neglected and ignored, they get care and attention until their bed is freed up or they get the treatment that they need.” 
The head of ED surgeons said he nearly swerved off the road when he heard that. 
Clinicians said they had serious concerns about system-wide hospital issues decades in the making, which they say are worsening as the sector grapples with widespread staffing shortages. Delays in treatment increase the likelihood of a mistake, they say. 
Now we have the DHB by another name saying surgeries are being performed at a rate of 73 per cent - the surgeons themselves are saying its closer to 50% or less.
They say that they are having to go from crisis to crisis, that they've been cancelling cancer surgeries, that they're having to choose who has the worst cancer and who won't survive unless there's surgical intervention - that's a terrible strain on professionals and will inevitably take its toll.

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