Southland children are waiting too long to see orthopaedic specialists, says MP Joseph Mooney.

The first term National Party MP for Southland is shining a light on the Southern District Health Board's performance and Health Minister Andrew Little's oversight of it.

Mooney says there are 122 patients under-16 waiting for a first appointment to see a SDHB orthopaedic specialist, including one who has been waiting 521 days for their first assessment.

"Children's bodies are developing and constantly changing, so to have a child waiting nearly 18 months to see a specialist is deeply concerning," Mooney says.

He wants the Ministry of Health and the SDHB to allocate resources to tackle the problem.

There are 18 orthopaedic surgeons listed as working at either Southland or Dunedin hospitals, and there have been issues keeping up with the demand from both adults and children, Mooney says.

Invercargill's National MP Penny Simmonds has also raised the issue of orthopaedic referrals this week, highlighting there are 1,579 patients (adults and children) waiting longer than recommend, including 230 needing surgery.

"Shockingly another 200 Southland children are also waiting for dental surgery because of a lack of theatre space", Simmonds says.

Mooney has also spoken out on cancer care, maternity services and the number of ventilators across the SDHB to deal with a Covid outbreak.

"SDHB management are being forced to move from crisis to crisis without addressing some of the critical health needs of the Southern population," he says.

Little, in a response to the Southland App, says he has been advised the Southern DHB has made a number of attempts to contact the patient reported as waiting 521 days for an orthopaedic first specialist assessment, but they have been unsuccessful.

"I have asked the Ministry to work closely with Southern DHB on waiting list management and to make sure there are clear plans in place to support long waiting patients," Little says.

Health Minister Andrew Little

Little says the Government is focused on improving access to clinical services at all hospitals, including those in the Southern District Health Board area.

"That’s why we are reforming the health system – to make sure that people right across the country have access to the healthcare they need, when they need it.

The Government has appointed Crown Monitors to oversee the Southern DHB’s work and it is part of the Ministry of Health’s Intensive Support Programme.

"This is expected to lead to the DHB making significant changes in areas where there is concern about its performance, including financial, operational and clinical management.

"The DHB has also been provided with expert support to help it implement change."

Mooney, however, challenges the Government's proposed restructure of the NZ health system.

"[It] could make more patients vulnerable, as putting almost $500 million into paying bureaucrats to create what could be another flawed system won't result in more hospital beds, more health staff, and an expansion of services in key areas."