DHB Makes Final Decision On Laboratory Services

15 January 2007

DHB Makes Final Decision On Laboratory Services Provider

Hawke’s Bay District Health Board chief executive, Chris Clarke, said Southern Community Laboratories had been confirmed as the future provider of laboratory services for Hawke’s Bay, and will work in partnership with the Hawke’s Bay Hospital laboratory.

The new arrangement will be effective from 1 March 2006. “From the public’s perspective, it will be business as usual. A full range of lab testing services will still be available throughout Hawke’s Bay – from Wairoa, Napier, Hastings and Central Hawke’s Bay.

“This change has come about as we recognised the need to work differently in order to reduce the current service fragmentation and to reduce the level of service duplications in Hawke’s Bay. DHBs around the country have realised there are savings to be made by changing the way they work,” Chris Clarke said.

The new partnership with Southern Community Laboratories is for an initial five-year term. While the arrangement has the potential to save millions of health dollars over the term of the contract, there are also huge clinical gains to be made from improving the way we work.

ENDS

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