Around 13,500 procedures and appointments were cancelled during union strikes over winter, yet the health system still posted across-the-board improvements against its public targets, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.

Quarterly results for July to September, released today, show:

• Faster cancer treatment: 86.8% of patients started treatment within 31 days, up from 84.6% a year earlier.
• Childhood immunisation: 82.6% of children were fully immunised by age two, up from 75.7% — the largest lift across the measures.
• Emergency departments: 68.9% of patients were admitted, treated or discharged within six hours, up from 67.5%, despite higher attendances.
• Elective surgery: 65.9% received treatment within four months, up from 62.2%.
• First specialist assessments: 62.3% were seen within four months, up from 61.2%.

Brown linked the cancer result in part to the Government’s $604 million funding boost for Pharmac, which he says has delivered 33 new cancer medicines. He also credited the Government’s “Elective Boost” with thousands of additional hip and knee replacements, cataract surgeries and other procedures since February, although no detailed breakdown was provided in today’s update.

The minister said the system made gains through a “busy and challenging winter” in which EDs saw more patients with seasonal illness, and he acknowledged that many people are still waiting too long. He thanked health workers and pointed to what he called a record $30 billion annual health spend and more frontline staff.

While the results represent year-on-year improvements, the release does not include the underlying volumes for each target, beyond noting the strike-related cancellations.