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8 News MARIA PACE PATIENT waiting times for elective operations have decreased at Mater Dei Hospital, after the National Au- dit Office flagged problems inside the hospital's management system in 2013. A follow-up audit released this week shows elective operations un- dertaken at MDH increased from 39,593 in 2013, to 48,252 in 2016, increasing throughput by 22%. MDH further developed a moni- toring system to flag patients who had been waiting for longer than 18 months. According to the NAO, the hos- pital addressed inefficiencies by increasing the number of sessions within operating theatres and the number of day surgeries that took place. Indeed, the increase in elec- tive operations included increased operations on Sundays from 639 in 2015 to 1,683 in 2016. In 2015, the hospital started con- tracting out operations by outsourc- ing 161 interventions in public- private partnerships. The hospitals leased fully-equipped operating the- atres for use by MDH surgeons. These initiatives led to 448 inter- ventions being performed in private hospitals in 2016. Intervention throughput also in- creased through the utilisation of operating theatres at Gozo General Hospital and Mosta Health Centre. In 2016, around 1,519 interventions were carried out at Mosta while 3,996 interventions were performed at Gozo General Hospital. Long-term patients at MDH were also transferred to proper insti- tutional care systems earlier than usual, also utilising Boffa Hospital to house such patients. Despite the availability of the residential and rehabilitation services, the num- ber of beds occupied by long-term care generally remains the same, at around 80 beds daily. The NAO's initial audit in 2013 re- vealed that although there was a high level of patient satisfaction with Ma- ter Dei services, one-fifth of patients had been waiting for elective opera- tions for over a year. The audit reported difficulties encouraging consultants and pro- fessionals to extend their working hours; an excess of long-term pa- tients at MDH; and the process of computerising the waiting list in a centralised system. The follow-up audit released this week focused on whether the wait- ing list management was supported by appropriate policies and strategies. Although there was an overall progress, some issues were still pre- vailing, mainly related to daily inter- vention and logistical arrangements which require better synchronisa- tion of hospital resources. Despite reviews by senior man- agement, daily intervention lists were still subject to a lot of changes, mainly due to no-shows and clinical priorities. By the end of 2016, all of the hos- pital's departments were using a computerised system for elective surgery waiting lists, a significant im- provement over 2013 when only the Orthopaedic and Ophthalmology departments were utilising this sys- tem. But the computerised system still required a considerable amount of manual input related to deceased persons, operations undertaken and 'no-show' cases. Because of this, some operations were marked as closed one month after the event, rather than a week, as advocated by the Surgical Outpatients Depart- ment. Moreover, four consultants were not making use of the system, going against the principles outlined in the Standard Operating Procedures. Because of this, Mater Dei's oper- ating theatres are not yet supported with a fully-functioning electronic system which makes scheduling of patient waiting-times easier. The NAO also found deviations from procedures on referral of scheduled intervention list: around 40 per cent of the theatre lists were still not received in a timely manner, impacting staffing and other logisti- cal arrangements negatively. Recruitment at Mater Dei remains a challenge, however, with a num- ber of calls for consultants issued between January 2016 and March 2017. While 85% of the calls were filled, a remaining 15% have not yet been filled. mpace@mediatoday.com.mt maltatoday SUNDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2017 Answer these 4 questions & count the number of scores marked in bold that best describe your condition: Do you have: 1. Fever of at least 38°C (or 100°F)? Yes No 2. Painful glands in the neck? Yes No 3. Cough and/or running nose? Yes No 4. Are you more than 15 years old? Yes No If all answers were marked , the sore throat is likely to be caused by a virus and therefore would not require antibiotics. If you have fever of at least 38°C and/or painful neck glands, or if your symptoms persist/get worse, or if in any doubt, consult your doctor. In adults, colds, flu and sore throat - especially when accompanied by cough, sneezing and running nose - are mainly caused by viruses. Antibiotics do not work on viruses and will not cure these types of infection. Drinking warm liquids and simple treatments like cough syrup, paracetamol and decongestants are sufficient. Do not take any antibiotic tablets, syrup or creams on your own initiative. Pharmacists cannot give you antibiotics without a doctor's prescription. Suffering from a sore throat ? POSTS OF LEGAL PROCURATOR AT THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL e Oce of the Attorney General Agency is inviting applications for posts in the position of Legal Procurator. e selected candidates will be employed on a full-time basis and will be required to work for a minimum of forty hours per week. Applicants must be in possession of a Legal Procurator warrant. Letters of application, including a detailed CV, should be addressed to: e Administration (Jobsplus 597/2017) Oce of the Attorney General, e Palace, Valletta and should be submitted by not later than Friday the 1st December, 2017, noon. Mater Dei makes impressive gains on operations' waiting-times Three years since an NAO audit, Mater Dei Hospital has recorded a general decrease in patient waiting-time for elective operations but the hospital still struggles to fill all vacancies for medical consultants