Giles
Dexter Political reporter
The
health minister has confirmed a new 28-bed ward at Waikato
Hospital that was supposed to be ready this year will not be
ready until 2027.
In November 2025, Simeon Brown
announced a fast-tracked hospital wards programme, to
quickly install
140 beds around the country.
The interim wards are
modular builds, designed to be constructed offsite and then
installed on hospital grounds.
The intention is to
free up beds in the emergency departments, and speed up wait
times.
The new wards were set to be installed at
Waikato, Middlemore, Wellington Regional, Nelson, and
Hawke’s Bay.
When Brown announced the programme, which
was funded through Budget 2025, he said all new wards were
expected to become operational during the second half of
2026.
But in an answer to a Written Parliamentary
Question published in June, Brown explained that “additional
acoustic testing” had resulted in an “extended design phase”
at Waikato Hospital, with the project now expected to be
completed in the second quarter of 2027.
Brown’s
answer said none of the projects had changed in scope, bed
count, or location, and all were on track to be
delivered.
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Labour claims the minister ignored advice
on the suitability of the Waikato site, and that the delay
will lead to longer wait times.
During Question Time
on Thursday, Labour’s health spokesperson Dr Ayesha Verrall
asked Brown why the ward was still in its design
phase.
“The project has experienced delays due to site
selection,” Brown said.
“I’m advised the site
selection has been an issue, which has had to be worked
through due to it being quite close to the helipad, and of
course, there being some potential noise issues, stakeholder
engagement, including engagement with
clinicians.”
Brown said it was a “tight site” at
Waikato, which potentially required additional
infrastructure and insulation. This was being worked through
with the “infrastructure team”.
Asked by Verrall why
he had ignored advice from the Treasury, Ministry of Health,
and Infrastructure Commission about the “inadequate
planning” of the project, including risks about the Waikato
site, Brown said he had been clear Waikato Hospital needed
more beds and the project was continuing.
“I’m not
sure if the member wants this project to go ahead or not. I
mean, I would like to see more beds put into Waikato
Hospital. The rapid inpatient units are being constructed in
an off-site manner. They can be constructed relatively
quickly. They’re a modular design. It allows that to be done
in a rapid way, to get more beds into hospitals which need
them,” he said.
“Yes, there are some site issues and
some site selection problems, they are being worked through
as I would expect them to be, but ultimately I’ve been clear
Waikato Hospital needs more beds and the project
continues.”
RNZ has seen an email from the Waikato
District chief nurse to a New Zealand Nurses Organisation
delegate that the “mobile unit is not planned for Waikato,”
as far as they were aware.
But both Brown and Health
New Zealand insist the ward has not been
cancelled.
Health
New Zealand’s infrastructure head of deliver Simon Trotter
said the unit was proceeding as planned.
“While the
overall delivery timeline is still being refined, project
completion is expected in 2027.”
According to Brown’s
original announcement, the Waikato unit was specifically set
up to operate as an assessment and diagnostic centre near
the emergency department, providing brief observations and
treatment outside the main wards.
A Health New Zealand
approval to deliver document from October 2025 found the
most feasible location would be adjacent to the Acute
Services Building, enabling patients “requiring brief
observation or treatment to be managed outside of the acute
inpatient wards, thereby freeing up existing inpatient bed
capacity for higher-acuity patient cohorts”.
The
document noted that “poor ground conditions” were
encountered at the site, but believed the risk could be
mitigated if lightweight structure and flexible foundation
solutions were incorporated into the design.
A Budget
2025 briefing from the Ministry of Health noted the project
was a “Ministerial priority,” but officials had concerns
there was “uncertainty in scope definition, timing, and cost
estimates,” concerns the ministry said were also shared by
the Treasury and the Infrastructure
Commission.
Following Question Time, Verrall told
media that Brown “had his heart set” on a particular
solution, despite objections from officials.
“It’s
clear that he has a document which explains the problems
with the site, and he was warned by officials in documents
for Budget 2025 that there were concerns about the site,
that the planning was inadequate,” she said.
“He went
ahead with this anyway, and decided on a solution, despite
officials’ concerns. It might be that if he had paused then
and chosen another option, there would be a solution in
place for that department.”
Verrall said people were
already waiting too long at that emergency department, which
had resulted in “tragic consequences” at times.
“The
absence of this ward absolutely makes the wait times
longer.”
It comes after the death
of a patient at the hospital earlier this week drew
renewed focus on wait times.
Health New Zealand has
confirmed the man presented to the emergency department on
Monday night, and was triaged, but later found unconscious.
Efforts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.
Health
New Zealand has opened a rapid clinical review, but has
already confirmed the man “was waiting longer than we wanted
him to be
waiting”.
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