Winter Demand and Resilience Plan
Our public hospitals experience surges in demand year-round, but demand is changing and the pressure on our hospitals continues to increase, particularly during winter.
Already in 2023 we have seen a resurgence of influenza. As more people become unwell with respiratory illnesses, this increases pressure on our hospitals. Future surges in COVID-19 and Long COVID-19 add to the challenges of winter.
To provide additional support for the winter period, SA Health has developed the Winter Demand and Resilience Plan 2023 (PDF 1.13MB).
Central to this plan is our commitment to provide the right care, in the right place, at the right time, whilst protecting our health system and healthcare workers as demand increases.
The Plan outlines the key priorities to ensure the community is protected, including:
- Enabling evidence-based navigation and coordination of our health system with insights and clinical decision support.
- Protecting our community by promoting self-care and prevention measures for COVID-19 and influenza.
- Ensuring people receive access to the right care, in the right place, at the right time by maximising use of virtual care, alternative care pathways and primary care.
- Improving ambulance response times and reduce emergency department (ED) overcrowding to minimise delays and optimise timely access to care.
- Improving bed occupancy and facilitate safe and efficient discharge from hospital to the right place for the appropriate level of care, earlier in the patient’s care journey.
- Attracting, retaining, growing, and supporting our workforce to maintain and deliver high quality services to all South Australians.