Wellness testing funds available now

Wellness testing funds available now

The BOP District Health Board is offering money to GPs now for wellness testing, to ensure no one misses out while a long term arrangement is worked out.

The DHB wrote to GPs on Friday offering $10,000 per month for the next two to six months, for wellness testing.

“GPs, through their PHOs, (Primary Health Organisations) have told us that wellness testing is important to the health of our communities. We are focused on ensuring that wellness testing that has a sound clinical basis is progressed, and we’re offering a short term solution to get the process started,” says Helen Mason, general manager – planning and funding.

It will be up to the GPs and their PHOs to decide what is appropriate to be funded from this money.

“Identifying tests as ‘wellness’ tests could be as simple as the GP ticking a box or writing the letter W on the request form, so patients are not asked to pay at Medlab,” she says.

In the meantime the establishment of a Laboratory Clinical Board is underway, to ensure closer liaison between the DHB, Medlab and the GPs.

“The recent discussions around our contract for laboratory services has highlighted areas where greater liaison would improve the services offered. The Laboratory Clinical Board will ultimately work to establish a range of appropriate wellness testing parameters to apply across the BOP population,” says Helen.

ENDS

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