About the data
The information available in this tool was gathered from three key sources:
1. Public hospital wait times
Public hospital 'wait times' recorded in this tool refers to the median time between placement on a public
hospital waiting list and admission to hospital for surgery. This data was for the 2017 financial
year, and was sourced from the MyHospitals website, run by the Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare (AIHW).
The data is available for
download here.
2. Public hospital wait-to-wait times
The public hospital 'wait-to-wait' time recorded in this tool refers to the median time patients had
been waiting for a first specialist appointment as at the end of December 2017 in Western Australia.
This figure represents an overall wait-to-wait time for Adult Tertiary Hospitals in WA.
The data was sourced from the Government of Western Australian Department of Health's website, and is
available for
download here.
3. Private hospital wait-to-wait and wait time estimates
There is no quantitative data available for private hospital wait-to-wait or wait times. For that reason,
HBF partnered with major private hospital network, Ramsay Health Care, to estimate private hospital
wait times.
The information available in this tool is based on a qualitative assessment of private hospital wait
times. Ramsay Health Care interviewed 50 specialists and based on their responses, determined that
the average wait-to-wait was around 2-3 weeks, while the average wait time was 2-4 weeks.
What is an elective surgery?
Elective surgery, also known as non-emergency surgery, is surgery which is medically necessary but can
be delayed for at least 24 hours.
What is a median?
The public hospital system records wait times and wait-to-wait times as a 'median' - this is a type of
average, and refers to the time within which 50 per cent of patients were seen.
What is a waiting period?
A waiting period is a set amount of time during which you can’t claim a benefit from your health fund.
If you’ve never had health insurance or you’re upgrading your level of cover, you may need to serve
a waiting period before you can claim.