NSW High Volume Short Stay Program To Slash Excessive Surgery Wait Times

The first tranche of High Volume Short Stay programs has begun rolling out in NSW, expected to deliver 2,300 surgeries by 1 July 2027. It follows a $30 million investment in late 2025 to help tackle the excessive wait times for essential yet non-urgent surgeries across the state.  

This much needed relief comes after the Bureau of Health Information revealed in its first 2026 NSW quarterly report that 3,955 individuals waited longer for their surgery than clinically recommended. While alarming, this figure is half of that revealed in the same report a year prior.

To date, the program has been implemented in health districts across the state, including Campbelltown Hospital, Shellharbour Hospital, Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, within the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network, and across Western NSW and the Mid North Coast. 

What Surgeries Qualify Under The High Volume Short Stay Program?

The surgeries eligible for delivery via the service are limited to planned procedures where patients are admitted for up to 72 hours, and belong to areas such as gynaecology, ear nose and throat, general surgery, and orthopaedics. In total, High Volume Short Stay surgeries account for more than 80 per cent of all surgery undertaken in NSW public hospitals.

The $30 million injection builds on the $200 million already invested since 2024 to reduce overdue surgeries. This priority spending allowed for the establishment of NSW’s first “Surgery Hub” at Northern Beaches Hospital in July, which is expected to perform up to 5,000 additional surgeries per year.

The 2026-27 NSW Budget also included $10.3 billion to support increased capacity across the health system, including to deliver an estimated 2,900 additional planned surgeries.

“We are investing in surgery services across the state, expanding access to care, cutting wait times, and improving patient outcomes,” said Minister for Health Ryan Park.

“These High Volume Surgical programs are exactly the kind of innovative care we want to see, and I’m looking forward to seeing this model expanded across NSW.”