Hospitals hope for FNQ bed clog relief
CHHHS Update
The latest Queensland Health data shows that more than 1,400 Queenslanders, through no fault of their own, are stuck living in the state’s public hospitals despite being clinically ready to leave hospital.
They include more than 1,100 older Queenslanders awaiting aged care placement, including around 120 people occupying beds within Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Services (CHHHS).
CHHHS Chief Executive Leena Singh says the issue of prolonged hospital stays poses a significant health risk to patients and is putting a strain on the broader health system.
“On any given day, 110 to 160 long-stay patients occupy acute beds at Cairns Hospital - not because they need hospital-level care, but because of a lack of aged care places or supported accommodation in the community,” Ms Singh said.
“For older Queenslanders, remaining at home for as long as possible supports positive mental health, preserves independence, helps prevent avoidable hospital admissions, and delays the need for residential aged care.
“No one wants to be in hospital if they do not need to be.’’
The impact in FNQ of the Commonwealth’s recently announced 5000 new beds nationwide remains unclear.
“We hope that the Cairns and Hinterland region will be the recipient of many of these beds given the low availability of specialist residential aged care facilities that many in our community need.”
Queensland Health conducts a quarterly point in time census across all regions to track long stay patients experiencing delayed discharge, with the latest census data finalised last week.
Funding the aged care sector is a federal responsibility, and without sufficient Commonwealth investment, older Queenslanders will continue to be stranded in hospitals beds far longer than necessary.
Statewide, long-stay patients experiencing delayed discharge have more than tripled since 2022.
With demand for residential aged care projected to surge by 60 per cent over the next decade, the pressure will only intensify as one in five Queenslanders expected to reach age 65 or older by 2041.
“The reality is that long-stay patients affect every part of the health system - not only in our facilities, but across Queensland and nationally,” Ms Singh said.
“When beds are tied up, patients wait longer in emergency departments, ambulances wait longer to transfer patients, and hardworking frontline clinicians are stretched further.”
Ms Singh said CHHHS is doing what it can to reduce hospital pressures by investing in access and flow initiatives to support safe discharge and improve patient movement through the hospital, including:
• Opened the 45-bed Sub Acute Care Unit (SACU) at Oregon Street, Manoora, in early 2023 for patients who need specialist care to improve function but no longer require acute hospital treatment. Nearly 950 patients have since transitioned home or to aged care supports, freeing hundreds of acute bed days.
• Secured an agreement with Pyramid Aged Care in Gordonvale to use 10 beds specifically for long-stay hospital patients, including people previously refused by aged care facilities because of complex needs. This provides a calmer, more home-like environment that improves wellbeing and increases the likelihood of permanent placement.
• Expanding Cairns Hospital, which recently delivered an additional 32-bed ward, and a further 32-bed ward next year.
• Strengthening partnerships with aged care and disability services to accelerate assessments, home supports, and NDIS and aged care applications, while expanding community-based rehabilitation programs.
• Established dedicated transition units for stable patients and assigned specialised coordinators to complex cases, alongside measures to keep patients active, fast-track legal decisions for those without family, and use data dashboards and predictive tools for early risk identification.
• Eat, Walk Engage multidisciplinary program that improves care for older people in hospital, preventing delirium and promoting faster recovery.
• Expanded virtual home monitoring to support safer, earlier discharge and free up hospital beds.
“Cairns’ population is expected to rise by 72,000 people by 2050,” Ms Singh said.
“This, combined with our ageing population, means our older-person bed requirements at Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service are projected to grow by 56.5 per cent over the next 20 years.
“While we are doing everything we can to address local demand, it is clear more needs to be done at a national level to reduce this pressure on our public health services.”
In addition to local initiatives, whole of system measures are also being undertaken by the Queensland Government to alleviate pressure on the broader health system.
This includes an $18.5 billion investment to deliver the Hospital Rescue Plan, which includes more than 2,600 new beds, three brand-new hospitals and expansions of 10 major hospitals.
The Queensland Government is also working to employ 46,000 more healthcare workers by 2032, with 75 per cent on the frontline, as well as grow alternatives to hospital admission.