Media release from Minister of health Tony Ryall

The largest ever annual increase in waiting list patients receiving elective surgery happened in 2009 according to official figures released today by Health Minister Tony Ryall.

"A total of 134,763 patients had elective surgery, which means more than 12,000 extra people got surgery in 2009 compared with 2008."

"Elective surgery is a priority for New Zealanders, and this result reflects the great work of hospital staff up and down the country."

"We are talking of an unprecedented increase in elective surgery. It means there are thousands of patients around the country who had operations for the likes of new joints, cataracts or other much needed surgery in 2009, who would have missed out in previous years."

"This is about DHBs moving resources to improve important frontline services like much needed surgery for New Zealanders. The previous government doubled the budget in Health but struggled to get much extra for it. We are determined to do better for patients than that."

Before 2009 the average national annual increase (2001-2008), had been fewer than 2,000 extra operations. The clear focus from this Government and DHBs has blown away barriers to elective surgery for thousands more New Zealanders."

"The new Government aimed to deliver an extra 4,000 elective operations per year on average over the first three years in office. We have surpassed that three year goal in our first year, with equivalent complexity of the operations," Mr Ryall says.