Over 300,000 people are waiting for elective surgery. Doctors warn it's only going to get worse

The Australian Medical Association is calling on governments to urgently provide extra funding to address a huge backlog of patients on elective surgery waiting lists.

The patient, Richard Slayman of Weymouth, Massachusetts, is recovering well and expected to be discharged soon, the hospital said. Source: Getty / Pramote Polyamate

Key Points

• There's an estimated elective surgery backlog of 306,281 patients across Australia.
• The AMA warns that number will rise to more than half a million if governments don't take urgent action.
• Its analysis shows Victoria makes up the largest percentage of the backlog, followed by NSW.

A ballooning number of people waiting for elective surgery needs to be addressed urgently with extra funding and reforms, the Australian Medical Association says.

If no action is taken by governments the number of people waiting for elective surgery is expected to reach more than 500,000 by 30 June, AMA President Steve Robson says.

The AMA's latest report says the elective surgery backlog shows a system under enormous pressure and struggling to meet demand.

"Recently state premiers have talked about the dire state of the health system and the need for urgent action through National Cabinet — this report highlights a key part of the system that's struggling," Professor Robson said.

"Our analysis shows hospitals can't meet demand or the recommended timeframes for surgeries and it's only going to get worse without intervention," he said in a statement on Thursday.

The report said there was an estimated elective surgery backlog of 306,281 patients nationally, which would grow to more than 500,000 by the end of the financial year if action wasn't taken.

Professor Robson said Australia needed a national plan to address the growing and increasingly critical backlog of elective surgeries, with an immediate injection of funds required.

"This plan needs to be funded by both states and territories and the federal government and backed by long-term funding commitments that deliver permanent expanded workforce and increased capacity to deliver services in our public hospital system," he said.

The AMA's analysis shows Victoria makes up the largest percentage of the backlog (134,950 patients, or 44 per cent of the backlog), followed by NSW (77,845 patients, or 25 per cent of the backlog).

Queensland and Western Australia account for around 10 per cent of the backlog each.

The report said the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the number of elective surgeries performed in recent years.

Professor Robson said most of the backlog consisted of people who hadn't been added to the waiting list, and were likely waiting for an outpatient appointment with a specialist or had simply given up.