West Coast District Health Board
Te Poari Hauora a Rohe o Tai Poutini
Corporate Office
Telephone 03 769-7400
High Street, Greymouth 7840
Fax 03 769-7791
22 December 2015
Susan
Email: [FYI request #3462 email]
Dear Susan
Official Information Act request WCDHB 8633
We refer to your email of 11 December 2015, and transferred to us by Liz McMillan of the Ministry of
Health, requesting information under section 12 of the Official Information Act on the minimum,
average and maximum CPAC scores for which patients were assessed and scheduled hip and knee
replacement surgery at our DHB in 2014 and 2015. Please find the answer to your question below.
Response:
The minimum, average and maximum CPAC score for those individuals who were assessed and
provided with hip and knee replacement surgery at West Coast DHB in the calendar years 2014 and
2015 were as follows:
Surgical Procedure
CPAC Score Range
2014
2015 *
Hip Replacements
Minimum
50
59
Maximum
95
90
Average
79.8
78.8
Knee Replacements
Minimum
35
65
Maximum
90
90
Average
75.9
77.0
Hip and Knee Replacements
Minimum
35
59
(Combined)
Maximum
95
90
Average
77.5
77.9
* Covers period 1 January – 30 November 2015
Please also refer to
Appendix 1 attached, which outlines the respective CPAC scores which drive the
relative urgency and priority for treatment within a four-month time-frame of being offered surgery
for the various orthopaedic procedures undertaken at West Coast DHB. Hip and knee patients may
access the waiting list at score of 65 as non-urgent routine cases; although as seen from the range of
CPAC scores of those patients who were actually provided surgery, patients may also be offered
surgery at thresholds lower than this score for non-urgent routine cases.
The attached orthopaedic scoring tool has been used to date by our surgeons to calculate the CPAC
score for each individual patient when they have been assessed for surgery at West Coast DHB. A
new national clinical prioritisation tool for access to publicly funded elective orthopaedic surgery has
been developed by the New Zealand Orthopaedic Associations and the New Zealand branch of the
Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. Earlier in November 2015, this new orthopaedic tool was
confirmed with the Ministry of Health following clinical consultation during September and October,
and is now ready for roll out across all DHBs, via a web-based format hosted on the Ministry of
Health’s National Prioritisation Platform. All DHBs are required to have implemented this nationally
consistent prioritisation tool for orthopaedic surgery tool by 31 July 2016. West Coast DHB is
planning to move to using this new tool in January 2016.
I trust that this satisfies your interest in this matter.
Yours sincerely
Carolyn Gullery
General Manager
Planning, Funding & Decision Support