5. Question No. 5—HealthDr SHANE RETI (Deputy Leader—National) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 5—Health5. Dr SHANE RETI (Deputy Leader—National) to the Minister of Health: What is the current average waiting time in emergency departments and what proportion of patients are currently seen within six hours?Hon ANDREW LITTLE (Minister of Health): In response to the first part of the member's question DHBs report on the proportion of patients who are seen in and depart emergency departments within six hours and the proportion of those who are there for more than six hours. DHBs have never reported on the average waiting times of patients presenting in emergency departments. In response to the second part of the member's question for the month of February 2021 83 percent of patients were seen in and departed emergency departments within six hours. Dr Shane Reti: Have emergency department waiting times deteriorated since 2017 when this Government came to power?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: It's not possible to say. Some of the problems with emergency departments are not indicative of problems with the emergency departments themselves but the rest of the hospital and the way they manage patient flow and the challenge for the system as a whole when they perceive there is a bottleneck in the emergency department is to make sure that the decisions about discharge of other patients throughout the rest of the hospital are being made and that space is being freed up for people to move from the emergency department to the rest of the hospital.Dr Shane Reti: Since he has been Minister which emergency departments has he visited to observe waiting times?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: I've visited a number of hospitals including their emergency departments.Dr Shane Reti: Can he name one hospital and since his visit have waiting times improved?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: Well I visited the Hawke's Bay DHB emergency department last week and I haven't been in touch to see how their waiting times have changed in that time except to say that it was a well worthwhile visit and a good discussion with the very hard-working professional personnel who operate it.Dr Shane Reti: What is the waiting time at Hawke's Bay emergency department for patients waiting longer than six hours?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: I don't have that data available and if the member wants that level of precision of information he can put that in writing or ask another question.Dr Shane Reti: Can he confirm that last weekend ambulance officers in Christchurch delivered patients to after-hours clinics instead of the emergency department because the wait time of people who could walk was a full day?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: No I can't confirm that.Dr Shane Reti: Which DHBs if any have had to treat emergency department patients on beds in hospital corridors this year?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: I can't answer that question but what I can say is that the health system that this Government inherited was in an absolutely appalling state which explains why this Government has put literally billions of dollars more into the health system last year alone increasing DHB funding by $980 million adding 3000 fulltime-equivalent positions throughout the hospital network: because the previous Government underfunded the health system so badly we are still trying to catch up.