A patient in his mid-50s died at Waikato Hospital's emergency department after spending more than nine hours in the waiting area.
The man arrived at the emergency department at 3.40pm on Monday. A member of the public discovered him unconscious in a toilet at the facility, and police were notified of the death just before 2am on Tuesday. Attempts to resuscitate the patient were unsuccessful.
Reviews underway
Waikato Hospital medical director Ian Martin confirmed the patient was triaged when he arrived at the emergency department on Pembroke Street in Hamilton.
An internal clinical review has begun to identify any immediate steps for improvement, with findings expected this week. Health New Zealand has opened a separate serious adverse event review, which is due within two months.
The case has been referred to the Coroner. Health New Zealand is providing support to the man's family.
Minister seeks answers
Health Minister Simeon Brown said he had contacted Health New Zealand about conducting a rapid clinical review into the death.
"The individual's family will rightly want answers, and Health New Zealand has assured me they will get them," Brown said. He described the situation as "clearly, it's not good enough".
Systemic pressures flagged
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said medical staff had been signalling that workforce gaps and capacity constraints in emergency departments posed a risk of tragedy. Hipkins argued the Government's hiring freeze and budget reductions have affected emergency department operations.
PSA national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons said waiting nine hours or longer at any emergency department should not occur.
Wait times at Waikato
On the day before the incident, families waited 10 hours to be seen at Waikato Hospital's emergency department. Some patients were told to expect waits of up to 14 hours.