Tens of thousands of girls and women with “non-urgent” health problems like chronic pain and discomfort are being denied immediate health service, RNZ reports.

Rowan Quinn, Auckland correspondent for RNZ, has written about why the Counties Manukau District Health Board is turning away people with “non-urgent” health issues – even endometriosis and incontinence.

The District Health Board (DHB) pointed out that Counties Manukau’s high proportion of obesity may have been one of the reasons – as high numbers of morbidly obese people could put a lot of pressure on health services due to more complex treatments, with surgery more likely to take longer and require more staff while complications more frequent.

It added that obesity makes women prone to gynaecological problems such as pelvic floor prolapses, incontinence, heavy periods, infertility, and even some cancers.

“That means fewer people are able to be seen, they’re taking up more theatre time, more beds – and the doctors are really really careful not to put the blame on obese patients. It’s a really complex issue. Anyone who comes in … it’s very normal to them, they treat everyone with professionalism and care … but it’s the population as a whole that is putting the stress on the system,” Quinn told RNZ.

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The issue emphasises the importance of having health insurance as it could help patients get the services they need even if their problem is “non-urgent” – something that insurers could remind their customers, especially those dealing with chronic pain.

Susie Ferguson, Morning Report presenter who had endometriosis, shared that she started experiencing intense pain when she was 14 years old, was diagnosed with the condition at 28, then had surgery to fix it when she was 40 years old.

She said she needed laparoscopic surgery to confirm her diagnosis as the condition doesn’t show up on scans. Therefore, her “suspected endometriosis” diagnosis lasted for years because there’s no money to get her into an operating theatre to be seen by a doctor – adding how easy it was for medical professionals to write off women’s chronic pain as “normal” period pain, especially when it’s invisible.

“That’s the point I realised I had been in that level of pain for years. This is a chronic pain condition, but one that with good treatment and management, can be dealt with,” Ferguson concluded.