Bureau of Health Information's 5 year patient survey sees significant improvement for Murrumbidgee, Wagga Base Hospital

In 2014, less than half of the region's emergency department patients were happy with the care they received.

Figures released this week from the NSW Bureau of Health Information found that patients in the Murrumbidgee overall thought their inpatient and emergency care had improved in the five years to 2019.

In 2018 almost three quarters of inpatients in the Murrumbidgee said the care they received was very good, an increase from 68 per cent in 2014.

The Murrumbidgee's emergency departments have seen an even sharper improvement, with the number of satisfied patients rising from 49 per cent to 64 per cent over the same time period.

In comparison, an average of 58 per cent of patients across NSW were satisfied with their emergency department care in 2018-19.

Wagga Base Hospital's emergency department saw significant improvement in several categories, including a rise in the number of patients who "would speak highly" of their experience to family and friends to almost three quarters of those surveyed.

Wagga Base emergency nurse practitioner Ruth Scanlan said she found the hospital's emergency department to be "excellent".

"I think there's been improvements in the layout of departments. There's been improvements in the way patients ... move through the department," Mrs Scanlan said.

"It's not just 'first in gets seen first', people get directed towards the best person to give them the best care at the time that they arrive."

Mrs Scanlan, who has been an emergency department nurse for 20 years, said Wagga Base saw "a lot of sporting injuries, a lot of DIY injuries, a lot of tradies' injuries".

She said the introduction of 'fast-tracking' for certain presentations had improved the department's efficiency, as some conditions can now be treated and the patient sent home or referred to a specialist within hours.

"Fractures, burns, sprains, some finger amputations, foreign bodies in the eye. Things like that ... we will see them quickly," she said.

"Because they can usually be seen and out of the department and referred to a specialist team in a short period of time compared with a patient who comes in with [something] more complicated.

"The more complicated patients will get seen, they just may need to stay in the department for a longer period of time."

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The BHI survey found that less than a third of emergency patients at Wagga Base in 2018-19 thought their health professionals adequately discussed their worries and fears with them.

Mrs Scanlan said she couldn't comment on why less than one third of patients thought their worries and fears weren't suitably discussed.

She said the hospital had a 'REACH Program' in place for patients and families to elevate any concerns.

"There is a program in place with signs up for people who are not happy or concerned [so they] can actually get to speak to the nurse in charge," she said.

Mrs Scanlan said the main complaints she heard from patients at Wagga Base were around waiting times to be seen upon arrival and to receive paperwork when being discharged.

"But I think we're pretty good at explaining to people why they're waiting longer than others. It's just a case of doing that routinely," she said.

The Bureau of Health Information's 5 year report, based on its own surveys and data collection by pollster Ipsos, found emergency department satisfaction remained relatively stable across NSW over the 5 years.

The report reflects the experiences of more than 200,000 people in the state who visited an emergency department or were admitted to public hospital.

In the Murrumbidgee about 700 people were surveyed each year.