Horror flu season creating ‘bottleneck' in stretched WA health system
'Spending 7000 hours waiting, waiting to get through the front door of the emergency department. That's not okay.'
Hoath said the issue predated COVID-19, and it was time to use facilities like hotels and private hospitals to boost capacity.
Department of Health director general Dr Shirley Bowen conceded WA's health system was under pressure.
'Ambulance ramping is one of the most visible challenges facing our health system, and those around the nation, and we take it very seriously,' she said.
'There is no one 'cause', there are many factors which contribute to demand, including high levels of winter respiratory illness, and issues such as road trauma, mental health and drug-related presentations.'
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Bowen said WA's ageing population and 'complex patient presentations' had made an impact, as well as the flu season.
'We're looking at how we can help elderly people in a hospital bed awaiting aged care. As a result, new models of care are being planned and implemented,' she said.
Opposition leader Basil Zempilas said the latest ambulance ramping figures were 'shocking and horrifying'.
'The health authorities have waved the white flag,' he said.
'If they were to truly attack this from every angle they might come to their senses and forget about film studios, forget about rugby teams, stop prioritising train lines, forget about public holidays and throw every resource and every available person at tackling this crisis.
'There is nothing more important for a government to be doing on behalf of the people that they govern for than looking after their health, the elderly, the young families, those who are ill, those who potentially are gravely at risk.'
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"This funding is tied to real and practical reforms," he said in a statement issued on Wednesday. "Phonics checks and numeracy checks to identify students who need additional support, and evidence-based teaching and catch-up tutoring to help them keep up and catch up." But regional families come up against other deeply entrenched problems, such as poor access to specialist services. There were 53 specialists per 100,000 people in remote areas in 2022, compared to 160 in the cities, with years-long public waitlists for developmental assessments with pediatricians in the regions. Disasters such as floods, fires and COVID-19 may have pushed regional kids out of school, with the non-attendance rate at 14.6 per cent compared to the pre-pandemic level of 10.6 per cent, according to a Jobs and Skills Australia report. The report recommended a suite of changes to re-engage and motivate young people, including linking them with local mentors and employers outside schools. While health and education reforms slowly work away in the background, former high school teacher Shannon Chapman says families can look at NAPLAN results as an opportunity to explore children's strengths. "NAPLAN results do not capture valuable skills and knowledge, such as a student's resilience, confidence, their creativity, their leadership," said Ms Chapman, a teaching and learning facilitator at the Dubbo clinic. "You probably do have this incredibly well-rounded child that may have below the standard NAPLAN results, but that does not capture a lot of skills and knowledge." Like many rural parents, Lizzy went to the private health system to receive a formal diagnosis for her son. That has opened up valuable learning and support programs, sparking a change in her son that's like "night and day". "I am grateful for the team we were able to eventually access, but I'm more worried about the people that don't have that or it's not accessible," she said. 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"The results tell us a lot about what we probably already know: that there are lots of kids at school that are struggling," Ms Forster told AAP. "Unfortunately, many of those kids can't access the support that they really need." Federal Education Minister Jason Clare says while there are some encouraging signs of improvement in numeracy and literacy, the results show there is more work to do. All states and territories have signed agreements with the government to fix public school funding, Mr Clare says. "This funding is tied to real and practical reforms," he said in a statement issued on Wednesday. "Phonics checks and numeracy checks to identify students who need additional support, and evidence-based teaching and catch-up tutoring to help them keep up and catch up." But regional families come up against other deeply entrenched problems, such as poor access to specialist services. 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