World-class Emergency Department opens at Waitakere Hospital

World-class Emergency Department opens at Waitakere Hospital

Waitakere Hospital’s new Emergency Department officially opens today providing a world-class emergency medicine facility for the people of West Auckland.

Minister of Social Services Hon Paula Bennett will cut the ribbon for the $9.8 million building which almost doubles the physical size and layout of the existing department creating significant extra capacity to meet the needs of the West Auckland community.

Waitemata District Health Board (DHB) Chair Dr Lester Levy says the new department reflects the DHB’s commitment to meet the needs of our growing population.

“Our Emergency Department is unrecognisable from the service that closed at 6pm in 2010. The opening of this expanded facility is another major milestone in the evolution of Waitakere Hospital and the high quality 24-hour service we provide today. ”

Waitemata DHB Chief Executive Dr Dale Bramley says over the last ten years, the volume of patients presenting to the department has increased exponentially.

“The number of patients presenting at Waitakere ED has increased from 28,000 in 2009 to 52,000 in the last financial year. This is the fastest increase in patient numbers of any emergency department in the country and rivals that of much larger hospitals.”

“Over the same period, ED staff numbers have risen from 50 to 84 to meet this growth.”

“Along with an excellent emergency department team, we now have a state-of-the-art facility to support this level of growth well into the future.”

“The new department supports fast, effective treatment of patients in an environment that enables our emergency department specialists to perform to the highest standard,” says Dr Bramley.

“In developing the department we’ve recognised that coming to the ED can be a stressful experience for people, so facilities have been designed to support a more comfortable journey for patients and their whānau.”

The expansion extends the Emergency Department footprint at Waitakere Hospital to 2494 square metres creating significant extra capacity to meet the needs of West Auckland residents.

It includes a new front-of-house zone with separate adult and paediatric waiting areas, an improved patient entranceway, reception and triage area designed for better patient privacy, four ambulance bays and a whānau zone providing additional space and comfort for the families of patients.

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The number of consultation cubicles has increased from five to ten with the new rooms larger in size to accommodate the family of paediatric patients. The department also includes an expanded resuscitation zone with larger rooms for plaster, simple and conscious sedation procedures.

A new corridor has also been constructed to connect the front-of-house zone and emergency ambulance bays with the main hospital, providing a more efficient route to the inpatient wards for ambulance transfers.

The co-location of the spaces supports a more efficient flow of patients both within the designated zones and through the department to both inpatient care and to the ambulance bay for transfer.

The new department is formally opened today and will receive its first patient on Wednesday 17 August.

Renovations will soon begin within the original Emergency Department footprint, including the development of a new paediatric zone, enabling greater utilisation of the bed spaces and clinical resources with completion expected in March 2017.

The Emergency Department expansion furthers Waitemata DHB’s commitment to investing in services and facilities to improve access to health care for the West Auckland community. Other initiatives include:

• A significant increase in medical staff at Waitakere Hospital in 2015 increasing the number of teams from six to 11. The teams include eight new medical specialists supported by an expanded pool of junior doctors.

• The refurbishment of Waitakere Hospital’s maternity unit completed in 2015

• The opening of an onsite pharmacy at Waitakere Hospital in 2015 improving access to

difficult-to-obtain medicines

• An enhanced acute mental health service based in Waitakere ED established in 2015

• The development of primary birthing unit options currently in progress

• Refurbishment of family rooms in hospital wards providing a welcoming environment for patients and families

ENDS

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