1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:01,600 Speaker 1: Trying to get to the bottom of the idea and 2 00:00:01,680 --> 00:00:04,040 Speaker 1: Health that some of the blockage in the public system 3 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:05,960 Speaker 1: is because they run to a clock. In other words, 4 00:00:05,960 --> 00:00:08,239 Speaker 1: if things look like they're going past four o'clock in 5 00:00:08,280 --> 00:00:10,760 Speaker 1: the afternoon, a procedures put off for another day. This 6 00:00:10,800 --> 00:00:12,600 Speaker 1: is all part of the private sector doing an increasing 7 00:00:12,680 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: number of elective operations. Labor party angsting over it. This week. 8 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:19,640 Speaker 1: Doctor Richard Sullivan is the chief clinical Officer at Health 9 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: New Zealand and he's with us Richard morning, Good morning mart. 10 00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:25,280 Speaker 1: So just background for you. We're a surgeon on does 11 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:27,080 Speaker 1: public private like most of them. And he said, look, 12 00:00:27,080 --> 00:00:29,040 Speaker 1: the problem is four o'clock in the public system and 13 00:00:29,080 --> 00:00:31,639 Speaker 1: we don't do it in the private system in simple terms. 14 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:32,560 Speaker 1: Is that true? 15 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:39,280 Speaker 2: In simple terms? That does occur year. So what we've 16 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:41,480 Speaker 2: managed to do MIC over the last year or two 17 00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:44,159 Speaker 2: is get a view across the whole country now about 18 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:47,199 Speaker 2: what we kill court really finishes. And that's what he 19 00:00:47,280 --> 00:00:50,720 Speaker 2: was referring to. So when a roster might run through 20 00:00:50,760 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 2: to say four to eighty or five, are they finishing 21 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:55,840 Speaker 2: you know, within an hour at that time, because that's 22 00:00:55,920 --> 00:01:00,360 Speaker 2: lost opportunity A. And so yeah, we measure that. Look, 23 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:02,959 Speaker 2: you know, we know in his particular hospital way, look 24 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:06,679 Speaker 2: at this last night they had about thirteen percent of 25 00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:10,600 Speaker 2: their cases that finish with the now of the rosters 26 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:13,960 Speaker 2: finished time. So that's a focus we're trying to improve. 27 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 2: We have had some food and we've had about a 28 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:19,960 Speaker 2: four percent improvement in reducing those their finishes, but clearly 29 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:22,640 Speaker 2: they're still an opportunity to make sure we get more 30 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:23,360 Speaker 2: patient through the door. 31 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:26,200 Speaker 1: Am Okay. We had the Health minister and also said 32 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:28,360 Speaker 1: this is union based and that's the problem. It's the 33 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:30,920 Speaker 1: union deal rightly, Wrongly, it's the way the unions have 34 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:32,440 Speaker 1: stitched this up. Is that true? 35 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:35,880 Speaker 2: Yes, So look, we have to align our schedules with 36 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:40,240 Speaker 2: our employment agreements, and so most of our theaters start 37 00:01:40,280 --> 00:01:43,199 Speaker 2: around eight in the morning. We bring them to two shifts, 38 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:45,399 Speaker 2: so they start around eight, they go through the midday. 39 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 2: In the afternoon there starts about twelve thirty and goes 40 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:50,240 Speaker 2: through the four point thirty And that's very much in 41 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,120 Speaker 2: line with our employment agreements. And so you can kind 42 00:01:53,160 --> 00:01:56,280 Speaker 2: of that thirteen percent is when theater finishes to his 43 00:01:56,400 --> 00:01:59,320 Speaker 2: point at around about you know, four or thereabouts, rather 44 00:01:59,320 --> 00:02:02,440 Speaker 2: than the fourth third. There are not many operations to 45 00:02:02,480 --> 00:02:04,080 Speaker 2: be fair, that are the less than half an hour, 46 00:02:05,520 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 2: So you know that is trying to squeeze it. And 47 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:09,959 Speaker 2: let's say, you know, we know we can do better 48 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:14,400 Speaker 2: for sure, but thirteen percent early finishes in that particular 49 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 2: hospital and some of the other hospitals are as high 50 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:16,840 Speaker 2: as twenty percent. 51 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:20,360 Speaker 1: So that you're doing operations to date at. 52 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:24,720 Speaker 2: Night, that's I mean, we did do operations at night. 53 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:25,440 Speaker 2: We do quite a lot. 54 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:29,640 Speaker 1: So outside of emergency I'm talking about regular scheduled elective operations. 55 00:02:29,639 --> 00:02:31,320 Speaker 1: Why are you running theaters twenty four seven? 56 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:34,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, so we don't run theater's twenty four seven. Part 57 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:36,679 Speaker 2: of that is about our employment agreements. Also part of 58 00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:39,160 Speaker 2: that is about looking after our workforce, but we do. 59 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:42,679 Speaker 2: We do run. So even though we have these early finishes, 60 00:02:42,720 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 2: we do focus on trying to run beyond that time, 61 00:02:45,800 --> 00:02:49,760 Speaker 2: you know, paying people extra after our kind of salaries 62 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:52,760 Speaker 2: or fees to do those extra shifts. And we've had 63 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 2: a real focus and to the point of the elective 64 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:57,840 Speaker 2: boost and trying to get more people through. So we've 65 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:00,960 Speaker 2: been running Saturday theaters, Sunday theater, but we don't do 66 00:03:01,040 --> 00:03:03,960 Speaker 2: that consistently. So we do that, you know, at times, 67 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:06,160 Speaker 2: but we know we need to gure people. 68 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:08,000 Speaker 1: To do it if you really wanted to or are 69 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:10,200 Speaker 1: you constrained by the unions and the collective. 70 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:14,359 Speaker 2: With workforce. He so it's more than just the unions, 71 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 2: So you need quite a big workforce to run full 72 00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:20,440 Speaker 2: sad day lists all the time. Now that's not say 73 00:03:20,600 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 2: that's not someone shouldn't look at, but what you know, 74 00:03:23,040 --> 00:03:25,360 Speaker 2: we need to look at the most efficient way of 75 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:29,160 Speaker 2: getting people through our theaters. You know, these metrics are 76 00:03:29,160 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 2: being super helpful. So we measure you know, what we 77 00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:34,400 Speaker 2: call the utilization, So how well we use our youth theaters. 78 00:03:34,920 --> 00:03:38,480 Speaker 2: Our benchmarks eighty five percent, we're tracking at eighty one 79 00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:41,360 Speaker 2: point three, so we could do better there. We look 80 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:43,680 Speaker 2: at our start and finished times, which is this conversation. 81 00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:46,160 Speaker 2: We look at our cancelation rates, which is really important. 82 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:48,160 Speaker 2: You know a number of people who don't get in 83 00:03:48,240 --> 00:03:51,080 Speaker 2: that sitting at around two percent in christ set, so 84 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 2: that's a pretty good effort. So we're doing beta, but 85 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:55,560 Speaker 2: no doubt room for improvement. 86 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:58,360 Speaker 1: Great insight, Richard, and appreciate it very much. Doctor Richard Sullivan, 87 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,640 Speaker 1: who is the chief Clinical Officer at Health New Zealand. 88 00:04:00,840 --> 00:04:03,480 Speaker 1: I'm depressed because what I was hoping, well, I wasn't hoping. 89 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:04,960 Speaker 1: I wanted to get to the bottom of it, but 90 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:07,080 Speaker 1: I mean, you got your question answered nice and clearly. 91 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:09,760 Speaker 1: What I was hoping he would say is no, none 92 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:12,960 Speaker 1: of that's true. We're working really efficiently, we're doing as 93 00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:17,360 Speaker 1: best we possibly can. But he didn't. He basically confirmed 94 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:19,479 Speaker 1: everything that was said on this program, and that is 95 00:04:19,520 --> 00:04:21,960 Speaker 1: of its past four o'clock. Don't worry about it, We're going. 96 00:04:21,839 --> 00:04:25,240 Speaker 2: Home for more from the Mic Asking Breakfast. Listen live 97 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:26,080 Speaker 2: to news talks. 98 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:29,279 Speaker 1: It'd be from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast 99 00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:30,200 Speaker 1: on iHeartRadio.