Radiology services are to be reviewed across Otago and Southland as the Southern District Health Board continues efforts to reduce waiting times for tests.
Draft terms of reference had been developed for the review, reports to today's hospital advisory, and disability and public health, committee meetings in Dunedin said.
The review would examine staffing, demand, equipment, private radiology services in addition to the planned CT scanner for Central Otago.
At its meeting tomorrow, the full board will consider the proposal for the CT scanner staff want to site in Dunstan, with a second planned for Queenstown in a couple of years.
Southern is to be assisted by the Canterbury District Health Board to undertake the review, which would form the basis of decision-making for radiology services.
Waiting times for routine radiology at Dunedin Hospital continued to exceed targets for key tests, an update to the hospital committee said.
For MRI, patients waited 18 to 20 weeks; the target is 16 weeks.
For CT, patients waited 16 weeks; the target is 12 weeks.
For ultrasound, patients waited 16 to 18 weeks; the target is 12 weeks.
Waiting times in Southland-Queenstown for routine tests were all within target. Chiefly at Dunedin Hospital, but also in Southland-Queenstown, significant numbers of patients were "unscheduled", meaning they were waiting for an appointment time.
