Explosive figures reveal for the first time more than 1 in 3 patients waiting to see a specialist on the Gold Coast aren’t being seen on time.

Shockingly, more than 35,000 people are on this crippling waiting list, the highest in the state.

It is more than double that of any other region in Queensland and 15,000 higher than at Queensland’s biggest hospital, the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

The December 2021 figures show:

• Ambulance ramping on the Gold Coast remains at crisis levels with almost 1 in 2 patients left waiting on ramps, in hallways or along corridors.
• A quarter of patients at Gold Coast University Hospital’s emergency department are not seen within the clinically recommended timeframe.
• Nearly 5% of patients on the elective surgery waiting list are waiting longer than the recommended time for surgery.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said the staggering figures proved the State Government was losing control of health services on the Gold Coast.

“The Gold Coast is one of the fastest growing areas in Queensland and yet patients, doctors, nurses and paramedics are being let down by a crumbling system,” he said.

“The population has exploded on the northern end of the Gold Coast but there’s only one major hospital to service the entire region.

“These figures show the Queensland Health Crisis, which is more than half a decade in the making, shows no sign of ending.

“Frontline staff want to take control back from Queensland Health, they want better resources, they want data shared in real time, they want to drive cultural change so that an ambulance doesn’t have to wait at the end of a ramp.

“These are just some of the solutions the LNP has put forward to heal the Queensland Health Crisis.

“Rather than making excuses, the Premier must finally start listening and start finding solutions.”

Shadow Health Minister and registered nurse Ros Bates said Queenslanders are dying in the arms of loved ones while waiting for an ambulance.

“For the Health Minister to say it is acceptable for Queenslanders to be waiting hours for an ambulance to turn up just shows how far she is out of her depth,” she said.

“Paramedics are crying out for help and have had to come up with their own solutions to try and put band aids on a system crumbling before our eyes.

“Meanwhile, thousands of patients on the Gold Coast can’t even get in the door to see a specialist.

“This is heaping more pressure on our health system and hardworking health workers who are straining under skyrocketing ambulance ramping and overcrowding in emergency departments.

“They’ve had enough of this Minister ignoring them, she must listen and she must act.”