Bigger better kids’ ward for Waitemata children

5 June 2012

Bigger better kids’ ward for Waitemata children

Waitakere MP Hon Paula Bennett will officially re-open a bigger, better children’s ward at Waitakere Hospital this Thursday, June 7.

Since January, the hospital’s Rangitira paediatric unit has been undergoing a $3 million expansion to add ten extra beds, a new indoor playroom, an outdoor garden area and a negative pressure isolation room for children with infectious diseases. A new parent kitchen is also a feature of the revamped unit.

Waitemata DHB paediatrician Dr Meia Schmidt-Uili says the expansion will ease the pressure the unit has experienced in recent years, especially during winter, as the population and patient numbers have rapidly grown.

“We will have a lot more single-bedded rooms to help manage our infectious children, and the very young and vulnerable,” he says. “So we’ll be able to admit children more quickly and reduce waiting times in the emergency department,” he says.

The unit’s expansion will also save many families from having to travel to Starship Children’s Hospital and, in turn, ease the burden on services there.

Waitemata DHB chief executive and father of two, Dr Dale Bramley, says the overhaul of the ward has also created a more inviting and welcoming environment for children and their families.

“Hospitals are daunting places at the best of times, so having facilities like the new purpose-built play room where children can have fun and just be kids will make a real difference.”

The Rangitira Unit first opened as a short stay ward in 2005 and cares for Rodney, North Shore and Waitakere children aged 0-14 years. Last year the unit looked after more than 2,500 children.

The average length of stay for patients in the unit is two days, although some children may stay in the unit for much longer.

Q&As

What sort of illnesses are most commonly seen in the Rangitira Unit?
The Rangitira Unit is a hospital ward for children referred by GPs and emergency doctors for medical care. The most common illnesses seen in children admitted to the Rangitira Unit are asthma and chest infections, skin infections and vomiting/diarrhoea.

Children with surgical or orthopaedic problems are seen at Starship Children’s Hospital.

When is the ward at its busiest?
Admissions to the Rangitira Unit are highest between July and October.

How many children aged 0-14 years live in the Waitemata district?
Waitemata DHB has an estimated 2012 total population of 553,698 people and it is estimated that 20.7% (114,691) are aged between 0 and 14 years.

Further breakdown:
It is estimated that there are:
• 39,825 children aged 0 to 4 years
• 37,386 children aged 5 to 9 years, and
• 37,480 children aged 10 to 14 years

ENDS

© Scoop Media