A Whangārei emergency medicine consultant is warning the incoming government about delaying the proposed upgrade to Whangārei Hospital, which he says the region outgrew “decades ago”.
The outgoing Labour government put $759m into stage one of a redevelopment of the hospital, and committed about $200m for a second stage.
Work on the upgrade initially started in about 2015 under the last National government, but there have been multiple delays since then.
Whangārei MP Dr Shane Reti, who is looking to be the next Minister of Health under a National government, has said the upgrade to Whangārei Hospital will not be completed in the next three-year term.
Speaking to Breakfast about the announcement, Whangārei Emergency Medicine Consultant Dr Gary Payinda said the building, which was built around 70 years ago, was “well past its used by date”.
“We’ve got problems of chronically leaking roofs, an undersized emergency department (ED) and other units, which are probably about 50% smaller than they need to be.”
Payinda said the Whangārei region struggles with immense poverty and is home to among the highest levels of working poor in the country, including deprived children and a high population of elderly.
“It’s shocking we haven’t had a [new] hospital earlier than this. We needed one literally decades ago.”
Payinda recalled the talks began of an upgrade to Whangārei Hospital the last time National was in government.
“I’ve been working this job 16 years now, and perpetually, [the upgrade] is two to three years away, and it has been that way for well over a decade.
“When we heard [Reti] say our hospital won’t be a first term priority, it really hit us quite personally up here, that again we’re going to be put off.”
Payinda said the team was “afraid” the $759m which was budgeted for the Whangārei Hospital rebuild might “disappear into tax cuts” if the project is delayed again.
“We just don’t want that to happen, we want some guarantee that [Reti] and his government won’t do that, the $795m will be preserved for our hospital, plus the $200m the second stage.”
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