Northland DHB chief medical officer Dr Mike Roberts said things were "going okay" at Whangarei Hospital but the management was concerned by the effects the strike could have on elective surgery.
"It's almost inevitable we will be non-compliant with the elective surgery target."
He was referring to the Government's requirement that patients receive promised surgery within four months.
Meeting the target was hard in normal times, he said. The surgery postponements from the strike made this worse.
When asked if other DHBs might also be at risk of being penalised, Dr Roberts highlighted the level of non-compliance.
Northland had not met the target in November. The performance of nine other DHBs was worse and he said December and January were typically difficult times to meet the target.
He said four months' non-compliance put a DHB at risk of a financial penalty.
For Northland it could mean losing $1.5m - one month's payment of an annual $18m in "discretionary" funding for its elective services. The loss - 2 per cent of total electives funding - would have to be spread across all services.
For each subsequent month of non-compliance, the same amount could be withheld.
"They initially said there was not going to be any leniency [relating to the impact of the strike]. They have now said that they are waiting to have a conversation with chief executives ... this week and may change their stance."
Dr Roberts was also concerned DHBs would not get any extra funding to cover the likely increased costs from agreeing to the doctors' demands, and that the level of care for patients would be eroded. The ministry said it couldn't comment on Dr Roberts' statements until today.
A spokeswoman for the 18 DHBs affected by the strike (West Coast and Taranaki are not affected) said they had coped well so far.
- NZME