An additional dedicated acute surgery list at Dunedin Hospital has been held up because of a lack of specialist staff.
Three anaesthetists were recruited but had yet to start on the after-hours acute theatre list, Dunedin Hospital clinical director of surgery and anaesthesia Prof Jean-Claude Theis said.
The extra 36 hours a week was to have started by the end of last month, but would be delayed a couple of months, he said.
The project aims to prevent elective surgery being cancelled to make way for the acute surgery that takes priority.
However, Prof Theis pointed out the hospital had provided an extra 40 hours' dedicated acute surgery since February.
In her report to last week's board meeting in Queenstown, SDHB chief executive Carole Heatly said elective surgery caseweights for the entire SDHB were 10.58% behind plan for February, but year-to-date were 0.91% above plan.
