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Chance to have say on new hospital
20 September 2007
Chance to have say on new
hospital
The Bay of Plenty District Health Board is to ask the community what it wants from a rebuilt Whakatane Hospital.
Board Chair Mary Hackett says a new hospital is a priority and the first step is to determine what services today’s – and tomorrow’s - community needs.
“The Board has a long term commitment to hospital-based services in the Eastern Bay of Plenty,” she says. “We know the current building needs a major upgrade and we want to ensure a new facility offers the right services to the region.”
A consultation process will start on 1 October and continue through October and November with a series of public meetings to be held in Whakatane, Kawerau, Opotiki and Te Teko, and a number of meetings organised by the Runanga in the Eastern Bay. All the groups contacted during last year’s consultation on community health services will be invited to attend, along with the public, local authorities and other interested parties.
Whakatane Hospital staff will be invited to attend regular meetings at the hospital throughout the period, so their views can be canvassed. “We are a big employer in the Eastern Bay and our staff are an important part of both the health service and the wider community. We expect they will have some good ideas for us,” says Mrs Hackett.
A joint workshop of Board members and Runanga members was held in August and core service needs were identified. “This has given us a starting point and the consultation process is a chance for the community to tell us if we are on the right track.”
Public meetings will be advertised in the media and there will be multiple opportunities for people to submit their views, by written submission or via the BOPDHB website.
“We urge people to come along and hear what we’ve come up with. Along with enhancements to current services, a vibrant new teaching hospital at Whakatane is critical to our vision of developing a Clinical School in the region, to attract and train a medical and allied health professional workforce.”
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