Lismore Base Hospital experienced a 5% increase and led the way for an increase in emergency department (ED) visits across the Northern NSW Local Health District, according to the latest Bureau of Health Information (BHI) report.

The BHI Healthcare Quarterly Report (July-September 2025) shows 56,905 patients attended an ED at one of NNSWLHD’s eight hospitals during the quarter. Lismore Base Hospital (LBH) saw 10,544 patients attend, an increase of 501, while Tweed experienced a 4.3% increase, or 604 attendees, to 14,742.

NNSWLHD Director Clinical Operations, Lynne Weir, praised staff for their ongoing efforts amid a very busy quarter, which saw the highest number of ambulance arrivals on record across the District. 

“We’re continuing to see very high activity and our staff are doing an exceptional job of working collaboratively to ensure patients get the right care, in the right place, and in a timely fashion,” Ms Weir said.

“I want to thank and commend our staff, from clinicians, to administration and support staff, and cleaners and wards people, who work tirelessly to deliver high-quality care to all NNSWLHD patients.”

LBH continues to improve its key ED metrics after underperforming for the last few years. This follows changes put in place by CEO Tracey Maisey around September 2024 that looked at the flow system at LBH and the engagement from all teams, such as medical, allied health, admin and management.

During July to September 2025, ED treatment started on time for the majority of patients (72.7 per cent) across NNSWLHD, an improvement of 3.1 percentage points compared with the same quarter in 2024, and higher than the NSW result (64.2 per cent). While LBH is still under the NSW result (61.7%), it was a 10.5% increase on the same period in 2024.

During the quarter, 10,400 patients arrived by ambulance, an increase of 6.4 per cent or 625 arrivals, compared to the same quarter in 2024. LBH experienced a 6.8% increase to 3,229 patients.

Of these arrivals, 80 per cent were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, which was above the NSW result (75.7 per cent). Once again, Lismore Base Hospital was below the NSW result at 73.5%, but this is an improvement of 6.9% compared to 2024.

NSW Health has worked with the Australian College of Emergency Medicine to introduce new Hospital Access Targets for local health districts and specialty health networks relating to the time from arrival to leaving the emergency department. 

These new targets are designed to support safe patient care and reflect the complexity of patient needs, and the diverse pathways patients may take once they present to an ED.

This is the third Healthcare Quarterly report to reflect the new Hospital Access Targets. Due to the change in reporting, the results for the new Hospital Access Targets cannot be compared to the previous July-September 2024 quarter.

From July to September 2025, 80 per cent of ED patients not needing to be admitted or transferred to another hospital were discharged from the ED within four hours, significantly above the state result (63.2 per cent). LBH recorded 66.4%, up on the NSW result.

All patients are seen and triaged when they arrive at an ED and, as always, the most seriously unwell patients are treated first. During busy times, people with less urgent conditions may experience longer wait times when large numbers of seriously unwell patients are being prioritised for emergency care.

If an illness or injury is not serious or life-threatening, we encourage people to call Healthdirect on 1800 022 222, for 24-hour telephone health advice. A registered nurse will answer your call, ask some questions and connect you with the right care.

From July to September 2025, NNSWLHD performed 3,994 planned surgeries, an increase of 11.8 per cent or 422 more surgeries compared to the same period last year.

The majority of all planned surgeries (83.5 per cent) were performed within clinically recommended timeframes, with the vast majority of urgent planned surgeries (97.3 per cent) completed on time.

Patients waiting for surgery are reminded to contact their doctor if they feel their condition may have changed so their urgency category can be reviewed.

There were 717 babies born at a NNSWLHD hospital during the quarter, an increase of 4.8 per cent or 33 more babies than during the same period last year.

INDIVIDUAL HOSPITAL RESULTS 

BALLINA DISTRICT HOSPITAL recorded 4,579 ED attendances during the July to September 2025 quarter. The majority of ED patients (74.6 per cent) who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital were treated and discharged from the ED within four hours. 

During the quarter, 334 planned surgeries were performed, an increase of 17.6 per cent compared to the same quarter in 2024. Almost all (99.3 percent) of planned surgeries were performed on time, with 100 per cent of urgent surgeries performed on time.

BYRON CENTRAL HOSPITAL had 5,376 ED attendances during the July to September 2025 quarter, comparable to the same period in 2024. The majority of ED patients (83.5 per cent) started their treatment on time. More than 8 in 10 patients (85.9 per cent) who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, were treated and discharged from the ED within four hours of arriving. More than nine in 10 patients (92.6 per cent) who arrived by ambulance were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark. 

CASINO & DISTRICT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL had 3,612 ED attendances in the quarter, an increase of 4.5 per cent (or 157 attendances) compared to the same time last year. Of those patients treated in ED who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, 85.2 per cent were discharged within four hours of arriving. More than nine in 10 patients (98.2 per cent) who arrived by ambulance were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark.

During the quarter, 222 planned surgeries were performed, a substantial increase of 52.1 per cent (or 76 surgeries) compared to the same quarter in 2024.

GRAFTON BASE HOSPITAL recorded 7,463 ED attendances during this quarter, an increase of 6.2 per cent (or 438 attendances) compared to the same quarter in 2024. Of these, the majority of patients (63 per cent) started their treatment on time, an improvement of 6.7 percentage points when compared to the same quarter in 2024. 

1,222 patients arrived by ambulance, up 6.1 per cent compared with the same quarter last year. Of those patients treated in the ED who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, 74 per cent were discharged within four hours of arriving. 

Planned surgery increased substantially during the quarter, with 682 surgeries performed, up 26.3 per cent or 142 surgeries compared with the same period last year. There were 30 per cent (or 339) fewer people on the waiting list ready for surgery at the end of the quarter, compared with the same time last year. 

LISMORE BASE HOSPITAL had 10,544 ED attendances during the quarter, an increase of 5 per cent or 501 attendances, when compared with the same quarter in 2024. There were 3,229 arrivals by ambulance, an increase of 6.8 per cent (or 207 arrivals) compared with the same quarter in 2024.

Despite the increase in demand, the majority of ED patients (61.7 per cent) started their treatment on time, an improvement of 10.5 percentage points when compared with the July-September 2024 quarter.

More than seven in ten patients (73.5 per cent) who arrived by ambulance were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark, slightly above the peer group result of 71.9 per cent.  

During July to September 2025, 1,350 planned surgeries were performed, an increase of six per cent, or 76 more surgeries, compared with the same quarter last year.

Lismore Base Hospital is now also rostering to Safe Staffing Levels in its emergency department, following the completion of recruitment of more than 27 FTE nurses earlier this year.

The staffing boost enables the rostering of a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied ED resuscitation beds on all shifts, and one nurse to three generally occupied ED treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts.

“The improvements at Lismore Base Hospital are a direct result of the incredible efforts of teams across the hospital, from domestic services and wards people through to nurses, doctors and allied health staff all working together to ensure better flow across the facility. 

Every role makes a difference, so a huge thank you to everyone for your continued efforts,” Ms Weir said.

MACLEAN DISTRICT HOSPITAL had 3,686 ED attendances during the quarter, with the majority of patients (75.1 per cent) starting their treatment on time. Of those patients treated in the ED who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, more than eight in 10 patients (88.8 per cent) were discharged from the ED within four hours. Of the 548 patients who arrived by ambulance, nine in 10 (90.2 per cent) were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark. 

MURWILLUMBAH DISTRICT HOSPITAL had 4,716 ED attendances during the quarter. Almost nine in 10 (89.4 per cent) ED patients started their treatment on time, significantly above the result for NSW hospitals of a similar size (68.5 per cent). Of those patients treated in the ED who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, 90.5 per cent were discharged within four hours of arriving. Almost all patients (97.1 per cent) who arrived by ambulance were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark.

During the quarter, 342 planned surgeries were performed, an increase of 11.4 per cent, or 35 more surgeries, compared with the same quarter last year.

TWEED VALLEY HOSPITAL had 14,742 ED attendances during the quarter, a 4.3 per cent increase (604 attendances) when compared with the same period in 2024. A total of 3,250 patients arrived at the ED by ambulance, an increase of 10.4 per cent or 306 arrivals compared with the same quarter in 2024, and 79.3 per cent of these patients were transferred from ambulance paramedics to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark. The majority of ED patients (78.6 per cent) started their treatment on time, substantially higher than the result for the peer group of hospitals of a similar size in NSW (57.7 per cent). Of those patients treated in the ED who did not require admission or transfer to another hospital, eight in 10 (80.6 per cent) were discharged within four hours of arrival. 

A total of 1,063 planned surgeries were performed during the quarter, a 4.1 per cent increase or 42 surgeries, when compared to the same period in 2024.