Average admitted cost per weighted activity unit 

Rationale

This indicator is a measure of the cost per weighted activity unit (WAU) compared with the State target, as approved by the Department of Treasury and published in the 2025-26 Budget Paper No. 2, Volume 1.

The measure ensures a consistent methodology is applied to calculating and reporting the cost of delivering inpatient activity against the state’s funding allocation. As admitted services received nearly half of the overall 2025-26 budget allocation, it is important that efficiency of service delivery is accurately monitored and reported.

Target

The 2025-26 target for average admitted cost per WAU is $8,183. Improved or maintained performance is demonstrated by a result below or equal to target.

Results

Commentary

The 2025-26 financial year recorded a 5.3 per cent increase in activity and service delivery compared with the previous year.

EMHS continued to build on its virtual care strength, including significant growth in the Home Hospital (HH) program, where clinicians had increased access to virtual operational beds to provide care for patients in their homes where clinically appropriate (HH services expanded from an average of 7.2 beds per utilised day throughout 2024-25, to 29.5 beds per utilised day throughout 2025-26).

Rising workforce-related costs continued to be the primary driver of expenditure growth, alongside increased costs for medical and surgical supplies and pharmaceuticals.

Balancing cost pressures while maintaining operational efficiency and delivering high standards of patient care remain a key challenge for the health service, which has resulted in EMHS being very slightly (4 per cent) over the target value.