Today's news that a record 58,317 people were waiting for surgery in NSW hospitals is yet another sign that Australia's public hospital system was in desperate need of help, the Federal President of the Australian Medical Association, Dr Kerryn Phelps, said today.

Dr Phelps said: "It's not just NSW - public hospitals are under severe strain right around the nation. In the past seven days alone, we've seen:

• In Perth, elective surgery cancelled in major hospitals and ambulances turned away because no beds were available.
• In Adelaide, public hospitals have also gone on 'ambulance bypass' and a hospital emergency department director has written to health minister warning of a crisis.
• In Victoria, state public hospitals are facing a severe nursing shortage, a shortage the state government is trying to urgently address.
• Nationally, many hospitals are facing 'access block' - elderly patients cannot be found appropriate aged care accommodation because of a critical nursing home bed shortage. There's a shortage of 9,000 nursing home beds in NSW alone.

"The AMA has calculated that our public hospitals need a funding increase of 5.5% to 6% - or about $600m - just to keep their heads above water.

"More is needed if we are to meet increasing demand for ready access to high technology and the additional demands of an ageing population.

"The boost in private insurance will help, but that will be in the medium to long term -additional help is needed now.

"We need additional funding, a better system of funding and a system of national standards to ensure high quality services are available to all.

"The AMA will be highlighting the problems facing public hospitals when doctors meet politicians at a Senate roundtable on public hospital funding in the next few weeks," Dr Phelps said.