Just 63.7 per cent of emergency department patients at St George Hospital were seen within the clinically recommended timeframe during the last quarter of 2020.
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And the rate was only slightly better at Sutherland Hospital, where 67.4 per cent of patients were treated within the clinically recommended timeframe for emergency care.
Figures supplied to the Leader by South Eastern Sydney Local Health District showed St George Hospital's emergency department received 20,134 presentations during the October-December 2020 quarter, but only 63.7 per were seen on time.
Sutherland Hospital's emergency department saw 15,917 presentations during the October-December 2020 quarter. Of those patients, 67.4 per cent started their treatment on time.
Figures for each quarter are released by the Bureau of Health Information. The most recently available figures are for the October-December 2020 quarter.
They showed the median time for emergency treatment at Sutherland Hospital was 12 minutes, compared with eight minutes at 'peer' or similarly classified hospitals.
At St George Hospital, the median time for emergency treatment was also 12 minutes, compared with nine minutes at 'peer' or similarly classified hospitals.
NSW Legislative Council member Mark Buttigieg said the figures showed our hospitals urgently need more funding.
"At Sutherland Hospital emergency department, only 67 per cent of patients started treatment on time and at St George Hospital only 64 per cent were treated on time," he said.
"It is essential that we see these numbers improve and people get their treatment started quickly.
"Sutherland and St George Hospitals are also lagging behind when it comes to waiting times for urgent elective surgeries.
"Urgent action is required to address critical issues with our ambulance service, emergency departments and waiting times for surgery to ensure people are getting the medical attention they need."
Mr Buttigieg said figures showed delays in ambulance response times in the area.
"The latest Bureau of Health Information statistics confirm that ambulance call-outs are at a record high," he said.
"For both Sutherland and St George, the time taken to reach urgent cases was shown to be longer than the NSW statewide median.
"It is clear that the Berejiklian government is not meeting the needs of the residents of the Sutherland Shire and St George when it comes to health."
A South Eastern Sydney Local Health District spokeswoman said Sutherland Hospital's emergency department saw 812 more patients when compared with the same period in 2019.
She said the percentage of patients starting their treatment on time represented an improvement of 3.6 per cent, and 63.6 per cent of patients left the hospital's emergency department within four hours of presentation.
"Although we have experienced steady demand on our services, particularly our emergency departments, our staff have worked exceptionally hard to ensure we continue to provide high-quality, timely care to our community," she said.
The Leader has requested a comment from the office of NSW Minister for Health Brad Hazzard.
