Tauranga Hospital closes autopsy room

Autopsies will no longer carreid out at Tauranga Hospital after the Ministry of Justice failed to organise a new service, says the Bay of Plenty District Health Board.

The DHB provided an autopsy room for the Ministry of Justice which was responsible for cornonial post mortems in the area but said the room was below standard and when the ministry failed to find a promised alternative service, the room had been closed.

DHB chief executive Phil Cammish said the ministry had agreed in January to find a new service within three months.

It is understood autopsies will be carried out by private pathologists.

The autopsy room was below safety standards and would need $2.5 million spent on it to bring it up to standard.

The ministry had known the room did not meet minimum standards for more than two years and its closure meant two to three autopsies a week would have to be done away from Tauranga.

Ministry spokesman Steve Corbett said it was disappointed with the decision and would be working with the DHB to ensure mortuary services in Tauranga could be resumed.

The facility is owned by the DHB and the ministry had a contract to use the building for the provision of autopsy services.

Alternative arrangements were in place should mortuary services be required over the weekend.

- NZPA