Whangārei will be getting an expanded emergency department and child-health unit in the first stage of construction for its new hospital.
The announcement was made by Health Minister Andrew little this morning, who said additional funding for the hospital had been approved by cabinet. Stage one has $759 million allocated to it.
Little said that the expanded ED would be able to cater for more people than originally intended - the acute services building will have 10 operating theatres, coronary care unit and more modern intensive care units.
The child unit will include a whānau house and emergency accommodation so families can stay with their children while they are unwell.
The ED and child units are the first part of a two-stage project undertaken by the Government, with a $200 million 158-bed ward tower with four medical and surgical wards alongside an acute assessment unit coming later.
Originally the upgrade was thought to cost $780 million, but now it's expected to be closer to $1 billion.
Little said the decision was made to increase the funding for the new hospital due to the poor condition of the current one, alongside a need for futureproofing as the area's population grows.
“It was originally expected both stages could have been funded out of the $780 million earmarked for the new hospital, but it became clear that would not build the facility Northland needs, so the project has been broken into two parts,” Andrew Little said.
“The building itself will last for 50 years and more, but service planning within the walls will change to suit the technology and health needs of Te Tai Tokerau residents over the years to come.”
The announcement comes as Northland has been struggling to keep up with the growing demand for health services as well as keeping up with changing health practices.
“Whangārei Hospital was built in the 1950s and is well past its use-by date,” Little said.
“On top of that, Northland is one of the most deprived areas in the country and has been under extra pressure from a rapidly growing population as people leave Auckland and move north.”
The current hospital serves roughly 190,000 people and provides backup to other smaller hospitals across the region.
The region's population is expected to reach 210,000 people by 2030 when the hospital should be finished.
“The previous Government failed to invest in the hospital infrastructure, and we’re seeing the effect of that now,” Little said.
The new hospital will be built on the grounds of the current one in the Whangārei suburb of Maunu.
Construction on the child health unit is expected to start in late 2024, with the full campus to be finished in late 2030.
Te Whatu Ora will be implementing a number of initiatives to obtain staff for the new hospital with the hopes of relieving healthcare pressures.
The hospital is a part of the $7 billion hospital rebuilding programme the Government has undertaken.
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