Low ranking for SDHB in survey
Low ranking for SDHB in survey
The Southern District Health Board has been jointly ranked the poorest performing board in a survey of senior doctors.
Eileen Goodwin
Doctor visits up under new scheme
Doctor visits up under new scheme
More parents are taking their children to the GP than expected under the new under-13 scheme.
Grant's pay has reputation-risk component
Grant's pay has reputation-risk component
Officials were given permission to increase Southern District Health Board commissioner Kathy Grant's pay to compensate for the risk to her reputation from making unpopular decisions.
Flu vaccine extension announced
Flu vaccine extension announced
The flu season is quieter in the South than other regions, but its effects are starting to be felt keenly.
Hope for playcentre
Hope for playcentre
A ''small influx'' of families to Outram Playcentre is probably just enough to stave off the possibility of closure, treasurer Rachel McNeill says.
Questions over new rental rules
Questions over new rental rules
New rental rules announced yesterday are better suited to Auckland's booming property market than Dunedin's ageing rental stock, a social sector leader warned last night.
Call for more help
Call for more help
An apparent rise in the number of suicides has prompted a call for improvements to southern mental health services.
Claim Bouwer's murdered wife had disease dismissed
Claim Bouwer's murdered wife had disease dismissed
The Dunedin doctor at the centre of the Colin Bouwer poisoning case has dismissed new claims aired in a television programme.
City gastroenterologist involved in worldwide Crohn's disease study
City gastroenterologist involved in worldwide Crohn's disease study
A Dunedin gastroenterologist is to lead the New Zealand component of a worldwide study into the causes of Crohn's disease.
Five posties gone as NZ Post changes begin
Five posties gone as NZ Post changes begin
Five Dunedin posties have taken voluntary redundancy in the mail delivery service scale down, New Zealand Post has confirmed.
Fix for call centre problems
Fix for call centre problems
Problems with the Royal District Nursing Service's call centre are unacceptable, and specialist health call centre consultants from Australia have come up with a fix, chief executive Todd Perkinson says.
Physio pool fundraising enters new phase
Physio pool fundraising enters new phase
The physio pool fundraising campaign is moving into a different phase, as it can start to tentatively plan a long-term future, Otago Therapeutic Pool Trust secretary-treasurer Neville Martin says.
Claim training environment unsafe
Claim training environment unsafe
Orthopaedic surgery at Dunedin Hospital is not adequately staffed to provide a safe training environment, Dunedin Hospital orthopaedic surgeon Prof Jean-Claude Theis says.
Losing trainees 'big blow'
Losing trainees 'big blow'
Losing orthopaedic trainees at Dunedin Hospital is a ''big blow for the South'', Dunedin North MP David Clark says.
Health centre overcomes difficulties post-flood
Health centre overcomes difficulties post-flood
''Cosy'' is the best way to describe the makeshift arrangements at Aurora Health Centre in the aftermath of the June flood, manager Sharon Smith says.
Surgical trainees warned off Dunedin
Surgical trainees warned off Dunedin
Surgical trainees have been warned to avoid seeking placement at Dunedin Hospital, because its trainee orthopaedic surgeon positions have been removed for a year.
Under 13 consultations 'good news'
Under 13 consultations 'good news'
All but one Otago GP practice has agreed to provide free consultations to children under 13, WellSouth Primary Health Network chief executive Ian Macara says.
TPP 'cold war taking place by proxy'
TPP 'cold war taking place by proxy'
The Trans Pacific Partnership is a ''geopolitical contest'' between the United States and China, University of Auckland law professor Jane Kelsey says.
NZ's role hurt its standing
NZ's role hurt its standing
Joining the war on terror ended up compromising New Zealand's good name, investigative journalist Jon Stephenson believes.
Competing agendas highlighted
Competing agendas highlighted
The increasingly fraught tension between New Zealand's competing military, intelligence, and trade objectives was a focus of the University of Otago's 50th annual Foreign Policy School at the weekend. Eileen Goodwin reports.