The number of Victorians staying more than 24 hours in emergency departments has more than doubled in three months.
From July to September 2022, 3676 people spent more than a day in an emergency department compared to slightly more than 1717 in April-June.
The most recent figures are a sharp rise compared to the same time last year when 270 waited more than 24 hours, according to the latest Victorian Health Services Performance Report.
Much of the state was in lockdown or living under COVID-19 restrictions at the time.
Victorian Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the hospital system was experiencing a significant backlog and there had been a record number of presentations to emergency departments through the pandemic.
"We continue to work with our health services, with our emergency doctors on strategies to ensure that we can move people to the most appropriate place for them to receive their care," the minister told reporters on Friday.
Ambulance response times and the elective surgery waitlist have stabilised, after both came under significant pressure during the height of the pandemic.
Victorian paramedics responded to 64.3 per cent of time-critical code one cases within their goal of 15 minutes during their busiest winter on record, which is a 0.3 per cent increase over three months.
"This is not where we want to be, our governor is absolutely committed to returning our ambulance response times to the best on record," Ms Thomas said.
The slight improvement happened while the service dealt with the impacts of COVID-19 and the flu, according to Ambulance Victoria's Executive Director Clinical Operations Anthony Carlyon.
"Together with the previous quarter, this was by far the busiest and most challenging winter ever," Mr Carlyon said in a statement.
Nearly 85,000 Victorians are now on the state's elective surgery waiting list, about 1000 fewer people than in June, but nearly double than before the pandemic.
Victoria's triple zero system and ambulance wait times attracted significant attention in recent years, with health one of the key issues heading into the November state election.
Ms Thomas said the Victorian government aimed to deliver an extra 40,000 surgeries by 2024.
Opposition Leader Matthew Guy previously pledged to halve the elective surgery waiting list in his first term if he wins the November state election.
