Death in ED toilet: Health Minister says 'rapid clinical review' underway

Health Minister Simeon Brown says a death at Waikato Hospital’s emergency department will be the subject of an urgent review.

A hospital worker told the Herald the patient was found unresponsive in the waiting room toilet early on Monday morning and could not be revived.

They said that before the death, the patient had spent “nine hours waiting” to be seen in the overcrowded waiting room.

“He [the patient] was wheeled through the patient waiting room with a nurse on top doing CPR.”

The source said children were in the waiting room when staff scrambled to try to save the patient.

Brown didn’t comment on what happened before the patient’s death.

“My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of the person who has died,” he told the Herald.

Health Minister Simeon Brown.

He said Health New Zealand (HNZ) will carry out a “rapid clinical review” to establish exactly what happened.

“The individual’s family will rightly want answers, and Health New Zealand has assured me that they will get them.

“I have asked to be kept closely informed of the rapid clinical review’s findings, and I have been clear that the family must be supported and kept fully informed every step of the way.”

HNZ has been approached for comment.

The death comes after the Herald revealed on Monday that staff had serious concerns about patient safety and long waits.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation delegate Tracy Chisholm said on June 8 the ED was overwhelmed with 300 patient presentations – the busiest she’d seen the ED in her career.

Tracy Chisholm is a delegate for the New Zealand Nurses Organisation and has worked at Waikato Hospital's Emergency Department for 18 years. Photo / Mike Scott 

“That was the worst day I’ve seen in 18 years. It was standing room only.

“We brought out extra chairs ... and there were still people standing. It was at capacity,” she told the Herald.

Health New Zealand’s executive regional director Chris Lowry confirmed 301 patients arrived on June 8, which was “very unusual” and a number not seen since March last year.

Dr Michael Connelly is an emergency medicine physician who chairs the Aotearoa New Zealand National Council for the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine (ACEM). 

Dr Michael Connelly, New Zealand National Council for the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine chair, said many EDs were operating at or above capacity amid “persistent” staff shortages, and “maldistribution” of staff.

He said ED overcrowding was increasing due to an ageing patient population, and ongoing issues with “bed block” – when those waiting in EDs can’t be admitted because hospital wards are full.

“Access block [bed block] puts enormous pressure on EDs and is a serious health risk to the public,” Connelly told the Herald.

Figures obtained by the Herald under the Official Information Act (OIA) show that from September 2024 to December 2025, the total number of ED staff across all 20 health districts nationally increased by 294, from 5527 to 5821.

However, while the national total, which includes corporate staff, was edging upwards, the data shows some districts saw a decrease in frontline staff such as nurses and senior medical officers.

Brown said last week that the national average across all EDs shows 74.4% of patients were being admitted, discharged or transferred within six hours.

He said the Herald’s national data on health worker numbers showed the Government was making progress.

“There are more frontline staff and more nurses working in our emergency departments than ever before, and patients are being seen and treated faster as a result,” he told the Herald.

Neither Chisholm nor Connelly believed the minister’s statement was a fair reflection of the reality.

Michael Morrah is a senior investigative reporter/team leader at the Herald. He won News Journalist of the Year at the 2025 Voyager Media Awards and has twice been named reporter of the year at the NZ Television Awards. He has been a broadcast journalist for 20 years and joined the Herald’s video team in July 2024.