ANDRE CHUMKO
Hawke's Bay Hospital in Hastings.
Senior clinicians in Hawke's Bay have told the Director-General of Health that the region's health services are in dire shape due to under-investment and have compared the situation to one in Britain where hundreds of patients died due to inadequate care.
Meeting minutes obtained by Stuff revealed that senior medical officers requested a meeting with DHB board members in May, nearly a year after the officers raised concerns with management that the region was heading towards a "mid-Staffordshire" type scenario.
The mid-Stafforshire scandal saw between 400 to 1200 people die at Stafford general hospital as a result of inadequate care in 2005-2009 and resulted in major policy changes at Britain's National Health Service, specifically around staffing and resourcing.
RACHEL THOMAS/STUFF
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield met with Hawke's Bay senior doctors on Tuesday. He says some of the issues highlighted in the region are similar to those faced by other DHBs. (File photo)
The senior medical officers expressed "major frustration" that nothing had changed as well as a lack of confidence in senior management.
They felt that if they did not address the board directly they would be held to account for any adverse outcomes.
DHB chairman Kevin Atkinson sent a letter to the medical officers following the meeting, saying he was "extremely concerned" and acknowledged the need for urgent and immediate action.
He told them underfunding in the health system over several years had led to problems and had meant the level of patient care had not been what it should.
SUPPLIED
Hawke's Bay DHB chairman Kevin Atkinson told the senior doctors he was "extremely concerned" and acknowledged the need for urgent and immediate action
Chair of the senior medical staff John Rose said the major concern was around "the increasing workload due to the increasing number of acute presentations to the hospital in all areas".
"It's not just a staffing issue. Clinicians and managers are doing things to see if we can achieve more with the same amount, but at the end of the day a significant improvement is going to require a significant capital expenditure, and I'm sure many DHBs are in the same boat," he said.
The issues were primarily due to a lack of capital expenditure on facilities in the DHBs.
ANDRE CHUMKO/STUFF
Hawke's Bay DHB chief executive Kevin Snee says the board is consistently signalling the need for major investment to the Ministry and Treasury.
"Emergency departments, intensive care, operating theatres, ward spaces, these are all areas under pressure," he said.
The Hawke's Bay clinical services plan produced last year said the hospital, a "mismatch of buildings and add-ons", was constraining the ability to deliver a contemporary model of care.
The plan said ED was not designed to receive the number of patients it was getting, ICU had outgrown its footprint, and there was great considerable pressure on operating theatres.
The plan said the board could not, and did not want to build a bigger hospital and instead had a focus on improving community and primary based care.
It did say an additional operating theatre would be built, but Rose said even that would not come close to meeting the needs of elective surgeries in the region.
Especially given the predicted increase in the number of elderly people and Māori in the coming years - both of whom have a higher prevalence of disease.
ANDRE CHUMKO
The Hawke's Bay clinical services plan produced last year says the hospital, a "mismatch of buildings and add-ons", is constraining the ability to deliver a contemporary model of care.
It would be years before facilities could be at a level to meet demand, should capital investment be made, Rose said.
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield went to Hawke's Bay to meet staff and management about their concerns on Tuesday.
"We had a constructive discussion about the challenges facing the DHB and how these relate to the broader national picture," he said.
SIMON HENDERY
"Emergency departments, intensive care, operating theatres, ward spaces, these are all areas under pressure," says Hawke's Bay senior medical officers chairman John Rose. (File photo)
"My strong sense is that the people of Hawke's Bay are well served by the district health board and specifically by the staff in the services provided in the hospital. I'm looking forward to continuing to work with the DHB to respond to the known service pressures and challenges."
Budget 2019 invested $1.7 billion over two years for DHB capital projects. How much of that goes to Hawke's Bay was yet to be determined.
Bloomfield said some of the issues highlighted in Hawke's Bay were similar to those faced by other DHBs, particularly with aging populations and an increasing demand for health services.
Budget 2019 invested $1.7 billion over two years for DHB capital projects. How much of that goes to Hawke's Bay was yet to be determined.
Bloomfield said some of the issues highlighted in Hawke's Bay were similar to those faced by other DHBs, particularly with aging populations and an increasing demand for health services.
Hawke's Bay DHB chief executive Kevin Snee said the board was consistently signalling the need for major investment to the Ministry and Treasury.
"In the latest submission in September 2018, the DHB noted it would need over $600 million in capital investments," he said.
The DHB had managed to reinvest a significant amount of money back into its health services or infrastructure through achieving seven successive years of surplus.
