Health priorities changed

Fairfax

HEALTHY INTEREST: Health Minister Tony Ryall has announced a "slimmed down" set of six health targets that the 21 district health boards will be expected to meet.

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Diabetes, smoking and immunisation stay in but nutrition, physical activity and dental care are out in the Government's new health targets.

Health Minister Tony Ryall has announced a "slimmed down" set of six health targets that the 21 district health boards will be expected to meet. Four from the old list of 10 have been axed including goals to reduce obesity and improve mental health services.

Those areas no longer highlighted in the targets would still be covered by other priorities and measures in the health system. Of mental health, Mr Ryall said: "Just because it's not in the targets doesn't mean it's not important."

He said the Government had inherited a system "overburdened" with priorities, objectives, indicators and measures.

The nutrition, physical activity and obesity target for DHBs had included goals for increasing the proportion of people who ate their recommended servings of fruit and vegetables. "How can you hold a DHB accountable for that?"

One of the old health targets, to reduce "ambulatory sensitive" (avoidable) hospital admissions, has been replaced with another aimed at shorter patient stays in emergency departments.

Mr Ryall said ambulatory sensitive admissions was "a very difficult concept" and the new target was easier for the public to understand.

Three of the targets were hospital-focused; the others were preventive.

"They are more focused on the areas the public are more concerned about."

The Government wanted more public awareness of the targets and how DHBs were performing against them, he said.

Obesity Action Coalition executive director Leigh Sturgiss said she was disappointed for the "myriad" health workers who had been working on nutrition and exercise initiatives.

"There's just unequivocal evidence that we are getting fatter as a nation and we need to stop the increase in obesity, particularly with our children."

She questioned where responsibility for nutrition, physical activity and obesity fell if not with DHBs. "It's too big for the individual person to cope with. You need a supportive environment."

The new list of targets includes boosting elective surgery by an average of 4000 patient discharges a year.

Ian Powell, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, said it was "a laudable objective but it's going to be a challenge".

"That will stretch the capacity. They will need to address the workforce needed for that."

One of the targets scrapped was one aimed at cutting the proportion of the health budget spent on the Health Ministry to 1.65 per cent.

Mr Ryall said he would still expect the proportion to reduce. "I don't think we need a target because we're working on it endlessly."

NEW TARGETS

Shorter emergency department stays.

Better access to elective surgery.

Shorter waits for cancer treatment.

Increased immunisation.

Better help for smokers to quit.

Better diabetes and cardiovascular services.