Canberra’s emergency departments are under intense pressure this winter, with a record-breaking influx of patients pushing treatment times to staggering new highs. At Canberra Hospital, the ACT Health app showed a jaw-dropping wait of nine hours and 13 minutes around 8pm last night, with 54 patients queued for care.
Dr Shakeeb Bani-Yaseen, clinical director of Canberra Health Services’ medical division, acknowledged the severity of the situation, calling the extended treatment times “definitely not normal.”
“This is the highest volume we’ve seen in a very, very long time,” he said.
However, Dr Bani-Yaseen clarified that the reported time isn’t just about waiting to see a doctor. “It reflects the entire process being triaged by a nurse, undergoing tests, receiving results, and then being reviewed by the referral team,” he explained. “It’s the full treatment journey, not just the initial wait.”
The surge highlights the growing strain on Canberra’s healthcare system as winter illnesses continue to drive patient numbers to unprecedented levels.
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