Data and attribution
Every figure on this site comes from one of the datasets listed below. The site takes each dataset from publicdata.au.
The national waiting times on this site cover 2024–25 and were released on 19 August 2026.
The register lists 293 public hospitals, and the site covers 163 surgeries and specialties.
How the build reads the data
publicdata.au serves each dataset as a dated version that does not change. The build pins one version of each dataset and records its SHA-256 digest. The build stops when a downloaded file has a different digest.
The build has no other source and no fallback. It does not fetch from the publishers directly.
What each dataset supplies
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) supplies three tables of waiting times, one for urgency categories, one for procedures and one for specialties. It also supplies the register of hospitals with their names, states, health networks and locations, and the lists of measures and reporting units that describe them.
Queensland Health supplies quarterly figures by urgency category and by specialty. The Australian Bureau of Statistics supplies the suburb and locality boundaries that give each suburb a centre.
Where this data comes from
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Bureau of Statistics
- Version
- 15 September 2021
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3, SAL_2021_AUST_GDA2020_SHP.zip, sourced 1 October 2026, https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs/edition-3-july-2021-june-2026/access-and-downloads/digital-boundary-files, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/v/2021-09-15/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Elective surgery waiting times by hospital and urgency category, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 3 October 2026
- Data released
- 19 August 2026
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, elective surgery waiting times data extract, sourced 3 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-elective-surgery-waiting-times/v/2026-10-03/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Elective surgery waiting times by hospital and intended procedure, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 20 October 2026
- Data released
- 19 August 2026
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, elective surgery waiting times data extract, sourced 19 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-elective-surgery-waiting-times-by-procedure/v/2026-10-20/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Elective surgery waiting times by hospital and surgical specialty, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 20 October 2026
- Data released
- 19 August 2026
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, elective surgery waiting times data extract, sourced 19 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-elective-surgery-waiting-times-by-specialty/v/2026-10-20/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Hospitals, Local Hospital Networks and Primary Health Networks in MyHospitals, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 3 October 2026
- Data released
- 19 August 2026
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, mapping details extract, sourced 3 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-hospitals-myhospitals/v/2026-10-03/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Reported measures and their codes in MyHospitals, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 27 October 2026
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, reported measures, sourced 26 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-myhospitals-reported-measures/v/2026-10-27/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Reporting unit mappings to health networks and states in MyHospitals, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 27 October 2026
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, reporting units, sourced 26 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-myhospitals-reporting-unit-mappings/v/2026-10-27/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Reporting unit codes and alternative names in MyHospitals, Australia
- Publisher
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
- Version
- 27 October 2026
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, MyHospitals Data API, reporting units, sourced 26 October 2026, https://myhospitalsapi.aihw.gov.au/, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-myhospitals-reporting-units/v/2026-10-27/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Elective surgery by urgency category and hospital, Queensland, September quarter 2025
- Publisher
- Queensland Health
- Version
- 10 December 2025
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Queensland Health, Queensland Government, Elective surgery, sourced 3 October 2026, https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/elective-surgery, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/qld-elective-surgery-by-category/v/2025-12-10/
- Dataset on publicdata.au
- Elective surgery by specialty and hospital, Queensland, September quarter 2025
- Publisher
- Queensland Health
- Version
- 10 December 2025
- Data released
- The publisher gives no release date for this dataset.
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- How to cite this data
- Queensland Health, Queensland Government, Elective surgery, sourced 3 October 2026, https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/elective-surgery, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/qld-elective-surgery-by-specialty/v/2025-12-10/
The data files
The site publishes the data behind its pages as JSON files under /data-api/. The build writes each file from the dataset files that publicdata.au serves.
Each file has its keys in alphabetical order. Any web page on any site may read the files, and a browser may keep a file for an hour. The published files hold the same content as the build's source files. A number such as 5.0 appears as 5.
Every file lists its sources in a sources entry, except /data-api/openapi.json and /data-api/rules.json. The file /data-api/credits.json gives the publisher, licence, version and citation for each source. A person who reuses a file credits the publisher it names, under the licence it names.
The file /data-api/rules.json holds the rules the site applies to the data. It gives the number of neighbouring hospitals in a comparison and the starting search radius in kilometres. It gives the longest age of a reference period and the longest gap in days between a Queensland quarter and its release. It gives the number of facilities matched to the register by hand. It names each measure. For each measure with a better direction, it says whether a lower value is better. It also lists the publisher codes for a withheld figure, with the reason each code stands for.
A figure has the state not_published when the publisher gives a code or a withheld mark instead of a number, and the state not_reported when the source leaves it empty and gives neither a publisher code nor a withheld mark. Each has a reason and no value. Neither is ever a zero. Every published figure states its reference period and its release date.
The file /data-api/index.json gives the counts and the scope of the data. The files /data-api/surgeries.json, /data-api/hospitals.json and /data-api/health-services.json list each surgery category, hospital and health service that has a page, with its slug.
Each of those lists has its own files in a folder of the same name, and the surgeries are in a folder for each kind. The state benchmarks are in /data-api/states/, with one file for each state that has figures.
Each hospital's yearly trend has its own file in /data-api/trends/.
The Queensland quarterly figures are in /data-api/queensland.json and in /data-api/queensland/, with one file for each hospital that has quarterly figures.
The file /data-api/suburbs.json holds the centre point of each suburb.
An OpenAPI 3.1 description of the files is published at /data-api/openapi.json. It lists each kind of file with the schema that the kind follows and the CORS, cache and robots headers that the site sends. The file follows the OpenAPI 3.1 schema, and each other file under /data-api/ follows its schema in /contract/.
A JSON Schema for each kind of file is published at /contract/, named for the kind, as in /contract/hospital.schema.json. The build checks every published file against its schema.
A chart of the median wait in each state for one procedure is published as an SVG file at /charts/, with the name of the procedure's page address and the ending .svg. Every state listed under benchmarks in the procedure's file in /data-api/surgeries/procedure/ appears in the chart. A state with a withheld figure, or with no figure, has a row that says why and has no bar.
Reusing the data
Each dataset keeps its publisher's licence, which the section "Where this data comes from" names. These licences require a person who reuses the data to credit the publisher. That section gives a citation to use.
The publishers do not endorse this site and have no involvement in it. The site excludes private hospitals.
Typeface
The site sets its headings and figures in Newsreader, a typeface that is copyright 2020 The Newsreader Project Authors and is licensed under the SIL Open Font License, Version 1.1.