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Cervical discectomy and fusion waiting times in Australia

How long public patients wait for cervical discectomy and fusion, at each public hospital and in each state — official AIHW figures, checked daily.

National median wait (public)94 days2024-07-01 – 2025-06-30

Public hospitals reporting23with a published median

As a public patientFreeunder Medicare

As a private patientAsk for a quotefees vary by surgeon and hospital

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Median wait by state and territory

State / territory	Median wait
Vic	40 days
WA	109 days
NSW	153 days

Shortest waits at public hospitals

The 15 public hospitals with the shortest median wait for cervical discectomy and fusion, out of 23 reporting.

Hospital	State	Local health network	Median wait	Operations in the year
Royal Darwin Hospital	NT	NT Regional Health Services (NTRHS)	14 days	11
Monash Medical Centre [Clayton]	Vic	Monash Health	23 days	48
Royal Melbourne Hospital [City Campus]	Vic	Melbourne Health	27 days	37
The Alfred	Vic	Alfred Health (Vic)	31 days	66
Western Hospital [Footscray]	Vic	Western Health (Vic)	34 days	11
Royal Adelaide Hospital	SA	Central Adelaide	41 days	60
Royal Prince Alfred Hospital	NSW	Sydney	45 days	16
Austin Hospital [Heidelberg]	Vic	Austin Health (Vic)	60 days	76
St Vincent's Hospital [Darlinghurst]	NSW	St Vincent's Health Network	76 days	28
Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital	WA	North Metropolitan Health Service (WA)	79 days	55
Westmead Hospital	NSW	Western Sydney	81 days	91
Wollongong Hospital	NSW	Illawarra Shoalhaven	89 days	46
Royal North Shore Hospital	NSW	Northern Sydney	99 days	76
Perth Children's Hospital	WA	Child Adolescent Health Service (WA)	109 days	15
St George Hospital NSW	NSW	South Eastern Sydney	117 days	60

Common questions

How long is the public waiting list for cervical discectomy and fusion in Australia?

Half of patients admitted from public hospital waiting lists for cervical discectomy and fusion waited 94 days or less (national median, 2024-07-01 to 2025-06-30). By state it ranged from 40 days (Vic) to 153 days (NSW).

Can I avoid the wait?

As a private patient you choose your surgeon and usually wait less, but you pay fees, partly covered by Medicare and any private health insurance. Private hospitals don't publish waiting times.

Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) — MyHospitals, elective surgery waiting times, 2024-07-01 to 2025-06-30. All data sources.

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