Government's health targets approach 'flawed'

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The Government has announced updates to its key health targets, but the Medical Association says they are "narrow and simplistic".

Health Minister Tony Ryall said several of the six health targets, which district health boards are required to publicly report on every three months, had been updated.

Cancer patients who need chemotherapy should receive it within four weeks of being assessed, under new government health targets.

The cancer target at present requires hospitals to provide radiation therapy within four weeks of assessment.

From July 1, hospitals would also have to ensure that patients needing chemotherapy received treatment within four weeks.

The childhood immunisation target will also change from July 1, from aiming at 95 per cent of two-year-olds being up-to-date with their vaccines, to 95 per cent of eight-month-olds.

Association chairman Paul Ockelford said the health targets were commendable, but the emphasis on targets was flawed.

The targets needed to work alongside other approaches, such as housing and education, that influenced people's health.

"If these are not addressed we will continue to have glaring health disparities in our communities and a high prevalence of preventable diseases that affect not only quality of life, but life expectancy," Dr Ockelford said.

The targets were "narrow and simplistic".

"They do not give a full picture of how our health system is performing because of the difficulty of linking these targets to information about patient and public health outcomes."

- © Fairfax NZ News