As well, fewer emergency department patients at Albury and Wodonga hospitals are receiving treatment within the recommended times.

The latest MyHospitals update from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows the number of Albury emergency patients - requiring treatment within 10 minutes - rose from just over 2000 to more than 5000 a year between 2012-13 and 2021-22.

Wodonga hospital over the same period recorded a zigzag rise of emergency patients that declined during the pandemic and then jumped, from 1402 in 2020-21 to 1749 the next year.

The number of urgent patients - needing treatment within 30 minutes - increased by more than 30 per cent at Albury hospital, from 10,653 in 2012-13 to 14,067 last year, and about 34 per cent at Wodonga, from 6737 to 9076.

Other categories of emergency department presentations listed in the MyHospitals update include resuscitation (to be seen immediately), semi-urgent (within 60 minutes) and non-urgent (within 120 minutes).

In 2012-13, more than 80 per cent of ED presentations at Albury and Wodonga were "seen on time", but this had dropped to 68 per cent and 65 per cent respectively by 2021-22.

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The figures come as work continues to upgrade Albury hospital's emergency department in a $36 million expansion funded by the NSW and Victorian governments.

On Wednesday, May 31, and Thursday, June 1, five community drop-in sessions will be held in Wodonga and Albury to give residents the chance to learn more about the $558 million redevelopment of Albury hospital announced by both states' premiers in October.

That project has not been welcomed by all parties, with Wodonga Council still lobbying for a Border hospital on a greenfields site.

Border Medical Association has repeatedly highlighted the inadequacy of the current Albury Wodonga Health facilities.

In April, the service was forced to apply a code yellow after overwhelming demand for emergency services.

Across Australia, emergency presentations have increased over the last five years, from 8.01 million in 2017-18 to 8.79 million in 2021-22, an average annual rise of 2.3 per cent, although figures fluctuated during the COVID-affected years.

The AIHW report revealed the number of hospitalisations involving a COVID-19 diagnosis jumped significantly from 4700 in 2020-21 to 263,400 the following year.

"This does not necessarily reflect the severity of the illness; it could be related to the widespread nature of COVID-19," institute spokesperson Dr Adrian Webster said.

"In many cases patients are admitted with COVID-19, not necessarily because of COVID-19."

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