24 Aug 2011

Improvements announced for Christchurch hospital

5:17 am on 24 August 2011

Christchurch hospital is to enlarge an acute medical assessment area and move its main outpatients department.

The developments costing $15.5 million were unveiled by Canterbury District Health Board on Tuesday.

The big earthquake on 22 February left the health board short of 35 beds and meant general medical services had to be split between Christchurch hospital and Princess Margaret hospital.

The DHB says the split is not clinically acceptable and more hospital beds are needed.

It says it will move the Parkside outpatients department to a new site in St Asaph Street at a cost of $8.5 million.

It will also spend $7 million to enlarge the existing acute medical assessment unit to reduce bed demand and reunite most fragmented services.

The DHB says it is one of several projects that will be needed as it tackles $70 million worth of quake repairs.