Hospitals Investment Reflects Demand For Private

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Stryker i-suite

6 August 2007
News release

Southern Cross Hospitals Investment Programme Reflects Strong Demand for Private Surgery Options

New Zealand’s largest network of private surgical hospitals, Southern Cross Hospitals, has added new facilities and state-of-the-art surgical technology as part of a multi-million dollar nationwide investment programme focused on meeting increasing demand for private surgery options.

Southern Cross Hospitals Chief Operating Officer, Terry Moore, says the investment programme in the year ended June 30 2007 – including a $15 million redevelopment in Christchurch, $4 million new theatre block in New Plymouth and a new six-theatre joint venture facility in Tauranga – reflected growth in both private and public demand for elective surgery, supported by the very best quality patient care.

Mr Moore says the not-for-profit hospitals group (operated by the Southern Cross Health Trust) treated around 60,000 New Zealanders in its 13 wholly-owned and joint venture hospitals in the 2006/07 financial year.

He says Southern Cross Hospitals also continues to complement and work in co-operation with the public health system – the most common procedures being hip and knee operations, along with cataract surgery.

“Demand is a mix of insurance-funded surgery, self-pay, ACC and DHB (District Health Board) contracts. While the majority of surgeries are still insurance-related, we are increasingly working with the public sector and offering service to ACC-funded patients and those covered by public funding arrangements.

“We have a strong regional presence through a national network of facilities and this gives people better access and offers a real choice of where they get treated.”

Mr Moore says investment across its hospitals over the past year has seen the introduction of Stryker i-suite technology at Southern Cross Hospital in Christchurch, which is among the first in New Zealand to offer fully-integrated operating theatres complete with camera and laser guidance systems to aid in laproscopic and other highly precise surgery, including prosthetics such as knee joints.

The expansion of Southern Cross Hospital New Plymouth, that opened this month, also added a new theatre and Stryker i-suite technology to the two existing operating theatres.

Other investment has focused on expanding and redeveloping patient wards at Southern Cross’ Auckland Surgical Centre, North Harbour Hospital, and Christchurch, along with a the completion of a new specialist centre and improved theatre facilities at Palmerston North. Southern Cross’ new joint venture hospital in Tauranga, Grace Hospital, is scheduled for completion in August this year providing six operating theatres and 52-bed patient wards.

“This is part of our commitment as a not-for-profit group to reinvest surpluses in medical technologies and our people to ensure that our patients and specialists have access to the best facilities and service levels,” Mr Moore says.

ENDS

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