Source: New Zealand Government
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control.
“Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin Hospital that will futureproof the provision of timely, quality healthcare for the people of Dunedin and the surrounding Otago and Southland regions. This will be a new, modern hospital, built at the former Cadbury factory site,” Mr Brown says.
“Last year, the Government invested $290 million towards the new Dunedin Hospital project, bringing the total funding for the project to $1.88 billion. Alongside this, the Government is investing a record additional $16.68 billion in health over three years.
“All New Zealanders deserve to see better results for that record spend on health, including better health infrastructure, to ensure they have access to timely, quality healthcare. The Government has listened to the Dunedin community and is committed to build a new Dunedin Hospital to deliver the healthcare locals need.”
Upon opening, the new Dunedin Hospital will provide:
351 beds, with capacity to expand to 404 beds over time
20 short-stay surgical beds, a new model of care
22 theatres, with capacity to expand to 24 theatres over time
41 same day beds to provide greater capacity for timely access to specialist and outpatient procedures
58 ED spaces, including a short-stay unit and specialised emergency psychiatric care
20 imaging units for CT, MRI and Xray procedures, with 4 additional spaces available for future imaging advancement.
In late September last year, the Government released Robert Rust’s independent review into the hospital project. The review found that the project was alarmingly off-track and over budget due to poor decision making and due diligence by the previous government.
“The Dunedin Hospital project was poorly handled under the previous government. They promised big, made poor decisions, and blew out the budget. We are focused on delivering a safe, modern hospital complex that Dunedin deserves,” Mr Brown says.
“There are few suitable sites for a new Dunedin Hospital to be located. The former Cadbury factory site purchased by the previous government has numerous construction challenges such as contamination, flood risk, and access issues. However, we are confident that these can be overcome, and it’s clear that using this site to build a new hospital would be far less disruptive than constructing a new complex at the existing hospital.
“Our review of the project means the hospital will be futureproofed for growth, with no change to the number of floors to be built. The new Dunedin Hospital will provide clinical staff with world-class facilities and is designed to meet the needs of the community. The site will also be futureproofed so new beds and services will be able to be brought online when needed. The new Dunedin Hospital will be able to adapt and expand in years to come to ensure it responds to changing needs.”
Further updates will be provided once the contracting process has been completed.
