Health Minister Andrew Little. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Health Minister Andrew Little. Photo / Mark Mitchell
A multi-million-dollar upgrade to maternity services in the Hutt Valley has been "paused" after a building was deemed earthquake-prone.
It was revealed yesterday the main building at Hutt Hospital, the Heretaunga Block, is below 34 per cent of the New Building Standard.
The second phase of a $9.47 million Government investment to improve maternity care is located in this building, with $2 million already spent on it.
In 2020 the Government announced the upgrade after news one baby died and another suffered brain injury from "poor care".
Health Minister Andrew Little said the first stage of the project, with new office and clinical spaces for the Community Midwifery Service, has been completed at a cost of $150,000. This is in a different building to the Heretaunga Block.
But Little said the second stage of the upgrade has been affected by the Heretaunga Block being deemed earthquake-prone.
"$2 million has been spent on the second stage which is in the affected Heretaunga Block. That project has been paused," he said.
The $9.47 million Hutt maternity services project was scheduled to run through until the end of 2024 and included the redevelopment of the Maternity Assessment Unit, Maternity Ward, and the Special Care Baby Unit.
The Hutt Valley DHB has been approached for comment.
Yesterday Hutt Valley and Capital & Coast District Health Boards chief executive Fionnagh Dougan said they have some years to bring the building back to acceptable levels but the work would disrupt patient care.
"Instead, we will be looking at how we can move patients and services out of the building as well as examining what alternative arrangements might work for our communities."
In 2020 the Government announced an upgrade to maternity services in the Hutt Valley after news one baby died and another suffered brain injury from "poor care". Photo /123RF
In the meantime, services would continue to be delivered from the Heretaunga Block and people could continue to access healthcare at Hutt Hospital as they normally would, she said.
Little stressed Hutt Hospital remained open.
"The Government is committed to the delivery of hospital services in the Hutt Valley, including maternity services.
"The health board is taking a precautionary approach to exiting one building at the hospital while continuing to provide services to the local community. We support that approach."
While details were still being worked out, Little said the move would be done in an orderly way to make sure patients still received the healthcare they needed.
"This will obviously have an impact on other parts of the health system, and the DHB is working with the Ministry of Health, Interim Health New Zealand, the Māori Health Authority and Capital and Coast DHB to minimise this."
Meanwhile, a proposal is going to be tabled at the DHB's next board meeting for the hospital to take over the Te Awakairangi birthing unit, which closed last year.
Hutt Valley District Health Board members Prue Lamason and Richard Stein are behind the move.
"We're going to move a motion that they lease it at least during the time that they are sorting out what's going to happen," Lamason said.
"It's just sitting there", she said.
The pair previously fought to try and keep the purpose-built primary birthing facility open, which was funded through the Wright Family Foundation.
However, directors and founder of Mothers Matter Chloe Wright made the "extremely difficult" decision to close it in September.
"The Hutt Valley DHB continues to refuse to engage in a partnership to provide funding for this charitable entity, which has been funded solely by the Wright Family Foundation for the past three years," a statement at the time said.
