Rotorua and Taupo hospital emergency departments are swamped, with calls being made for non-emergency patients to stay away.

The Lakes District Health Board says both hospital's EDs are 'very busy”, with extremely limited capacity to admit more patients to either hospital.

In a written statement, Lakes DHB says Rotorua Hospital in particular has been at capacity for the last few weeks.

'The ED at Rotorua Hospital has been swamped with people waiting to see a doctor in recent weeks, often meaning long waits for treatment.”

The statement says a number of patients coming to the EDs have issues that do not represent a health emergency, and these patients should instead be contacting their GP or calling the Healthline health information service on 0800 611 116 for free health advice.

The Healthline is a 24/7 free telephone health information service, staffed by registered nurses who will assess each patient's health needs, and give information and advice to help them decide on the best level of care.

The Head of Department for Rotorua Hospital's ED, Dr Suzanne Moran says staff in ED and across the hospital, are under huge pressure, and they need to be able to focus on the sickest patients.

She says the current long waits to be seen are resulting in some patients becoming impatient and abusing staff, which adds to the current stressful working environment and is unacceptable.

'Whilst we understand it must be frustrating for patients, staff are all working hard and doing their best. Verbal or physical abuse is never acceptable.”

She is urging people to keep EDs for emergencies, to only come to the ED for treatment if they really need to, and to be patient while they wait to be seen.

'If your health issue is not an emergency then contact your GP, Healthline or Lakes PrimeCare,” says Suzanne.

Often in the evenings or during the weekends the emergency departments at Rotorua and Taupo are visited by people who have a long term condition that should be managed by GPs during office hours.

Suzanne says it's always important for people with long term conditions, like diabetes and high blood pressure, to plan ahead and make sure they are up to date with their medications, so they are better placed to keep on top of their condition.

'We also find that a few people come to ED seeking a second opinion or because they want to get their investigation or a clinic appointment brought forward. This is not the role of the Emergency Department,” she says.