Public and private waiting times

Private hospitals

Private hospitals are excluded. The site shows no figure for a private hospital and no estimate in its place. No private hospital figure is therefore available for comparison.

What the public figures cover

The figures cover planned surgery at public hospitals. They count the time a patient spends on the waiting list for surgery. They leave out the wait to see a specialist before the patient joins the list.

• Methodology

Questions to ask a provider

A patient who is comparing a public hospital with a private one can put the same questions to each provider.

• What is the total cost, including the surgeon, the anaesthetist and the hospital?
• How long is the wait to see the specialist, and how long is the wait for the surgery after that?
• Which waiting time does the provider quote, and what does that time count?

• Public hospitals