Hon Simeon Brown
Minister of Health

Health Minister Simeon Brown has today officially opened Wellington Regional Hospital’s first High Dependency Unit (HDU).

“This unit will boost critical care services in the lower North Island, providing extra capacity and relieving pressure on the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and emergency department.

“Wellington Regional Hospital has previously relied on the ICU for all patients that require critical care. This includes high dependency patients who do not need the same level of care as intensive care patients.

“This was putting significant pressure on the ICU, which was often at capacity with unplanned admissions, and impacted its ability to support elective surgery admissions. As a result, planned surgeries that required significant post-operative care, such as heart surgery or major cancer surgery, would be postponed.

“The ICU being at capacity was also creating patient flow issues and causing longer wait times for patients in ED needing critical care as they waited for a bed to become available.

“The addition of an HDU now means that patients who do not need to be in the ICU but are not well enough to be discharged to a ward and still require close observation can be cared for in a separate unit.

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“Expanding critical care capacity and ensuring that patients are cared for in the right environment will free up bed availability and help to improve hospital flow from the emergency department, while also reducing the need to postpone planned surgeries.

“This is key to achieving the Government’s health target for shorter stays in emergency departments and shorter wait times for elective treatment.

“The unit will have 12 beds and the latest in critical care equipment, and will be staffed by intensive care specialists, registrars, and critical care trained nurses.

“Improving health infrastructure is a priority for the Government to enable access to timely, quality healthcare. This new HDU will enhance health services for the region, ensuring patients in the lower North and upper South Islands who require support after major surgery will be able to receive it when they need it,” Mr Brown says.

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