After all the noise and spin, little will change in Victoria's hospitals.

After what has been touted as the biggest health reform in more than two decades, the state's hospitals may end up looking worryingly similar to the way they do now. Politics and spin aside, the health financing agreement will deliver only moderate improvements for Victoria's hospitals - not the real reform our system has been crying out for.

The additional 332-bed package falls far short of what is needed to improve hospital access.

At present, our hospitals are struggling to cope with the increased demand for in-patient services, and patients are being left with long waits for emergency care and elective surgery. This inevitably increases the patients' risk of complications.

The target to treat 95 per cent of elective surgery patients within clinically recommended time frames and limit emergency department waits to four hours is terrific in theory, but will be close to impossible to put into practice.