Source: New Zealand Government
AcknowledgementsGood afternoon, everyone. Thank you for being here.It’s a pleasure to join you here today to officially open this beautiful facility at Wakefield Hospital.I’d like to acknowledge the Evolution Healthcare leadership team, and their esteemed guests here today including investors, and mana whenua.I’d also like to acknowledge:
Evolution Board Chair, Scott Pickering
Group CEO, Simon Keating
Chief Executive of Hospitals & Day Surgeries, Michael Quirke
General Manager, Carole Kaffes
Health New Zealand Deputy Chief Executive, Robyn Shearer
Deputy Commissioner of Health New Zealand, Ken Whelan
And the Kapa Haka group from South Wellington Intermediate School
And finally, I would like to thank and acknowledge the staff and clinicians providing exceptional care to patients here at Wakefield and other providers across the Wellington region.
Health TargetsAs you’re all aware, improving our health system is one of this Government’s top priorities.Last year we announced an ambitious new direction for health, reinvigorating five health targets to ensure that all New Zealanders can access timely, quality healthcare.We all know that you cannot manage what you do not measure.It is only with clear, measurable targets that we can understand and improve the performance of the health system. Targets focus resources, attention, and accountability.Targets save lives.The five health targets are tightly focused on things that really matter: faster cancer treatment, increased childhood immunisation, shorter stays in EDs and shorter wait times for assessments and treatment.Achieving these targets will require a back-to-basics approach in our public system to make sure our hospitals and community health services work smoothly and efficiently as a system, enabling our greatest asset – our frontline health workers – to provide the best possible care.The health system continues to be under significant pressure, and there is always a demand for more money. I am proud of the record investment this Government has made in health, but we need to also ensure we get value for money. Role of Private Hospital SectorMeeting those targets will require working in a more collaborative way, especially when it comes to reducing waitlists for elective treatment.When we left office in 2017, 97.3 percent of New Zealanders were getting elective surgeries within four months. When Labour left office, it had dropped to 62.1 percent. It will take time to turn this around, but it is a top priority of mine.Partnering with the private health sector is a key part of our plans to deliver for Kiwis. Aside from ensuring our public systems are working as efficiently as possible, we also need to consider how we can make best use of the capacity and expertise the private health sector can offer.Wakefield Hospital is a strong provider for the people in the Capital, Coast and Hutt Valley districts, as well as supporting referrals from out of the region with people travelling from as far afield as Waikato and the South Island.In the 23/24 financial year, Wakefield Hospital treated 450 patients on behalf of Capital, Coast and Hutt Valley, and along with Bowen and Royston hospitals, meant Evolution Healthcare was the largest private provider for outsourcing in the Central Region.It is great to be here to celebrated the redevelopment of this hospital today and to congratulate everyone who has worked to deliver this project. The new Wakefield development includes seven new operating theatres, specialist cardiology and surgical treatment capacity, a 37-bed inpatient ward with capacity to expand an additional 32 inpatient beds. All this will increase the opportunities to deliver more for the Wellington Region and to grow opportunities to work closely with Wellington Hospital to provide more services and improve patient outcomes.Looking forward, the goal must be to create a mutually beneficial partnership that supports the health system and provides greater certainty for the private health sector.A key part of the strategy is a nationally supported approach to planning and outsourcing, and longer-term contracts and agreements which will help ensure patients get the treatment they need in a timely manner. By standardising referral arrangements and focusing on jointly managing waitlists by using all available capacity more effectively, Health New Zealand can prevent unnecessary delays and ensure that patients are referred to the right provider at the right time.As Minister of Health, my focus is and always will be on improving patient outcomes. Patients will be my number one priority, ensuring they get the timely and quality care they need and deserve. ConclusionI want to again thank you for the opportunity to join you here this afternoon, and for your ongoing dedication and investment into caring for New Zealanders. Congratulations to everyone who has been part of delivering this project, and to those who will be ensuring it delivers timely and quality care for patients in the Wellington Region.
