By June last year, the second stage of the project had been classed as "delayed" by 12 quarters.
This made it the most delayed health project in the country — even more so than the troubled new Dunedin hospital project, which was classed as delayed by six quarters before the government hit pause on the project in September last year.
Former head of the emergency department Dr John Chambers was there at the start of the maintenance project.
He said there were several reasons why the project could have been delayed, most notably the view from some that it could be "throwing good money after bad" with the new Dunedin hospital project under way.
"There’s money sitting there to help with the engineering work.
"It doesn’t help that a lot of the staff keep changing.
"But if your task is to manage under pressure to save money, then you may be under pressure not to actually spend that money."
Labour’s health infrastructure spokeswoman Tracey McLellan said when this government put the brakes on the new Dunedin hospital, they needed to prioritise keeping the lights on at the old hospital.
"The people of the South deserve a fully working hospital in Dunedin, and right now they don’t have that."
But in a parting shot, a spokeswoman for the office of the Health Minister said "Labour has a track record of mismanagement around health infrastructure projects and Dunedin has clearly suffered badly from that".
Health New Zealand (HNZ) Te Waipounamu regional head of infrastructure Dr Rob Ojala said the $32.6 million urgent interim works package targeting key areas such as ICU and endoscopy at Dunedin Hospital was almost complete.
"In 2020, we approved the ongoing $23.6m critical infrastructure works programme to ensure the wider Dunedin Hospital campus remains safe and functioning up until the opening of the new Dunedin hospital.
"The focus of this programme is on addressing necessary and urgent remediation of infrastructure such as pipes, ventilation and electrical services, to maintain the safe running of clinical services."
Dr Ojala said as of December 2024, HNZ had spent $6.2m of the funding allocated for the critical infrastructure works programme.
"We have committed an additional $2.7m towards other projects within this programme, and we expect to spend this allocation by mid-2026.
"These projects include replacement of electrical distribution boards as well as necessary remediation of pipes and building fabrics."
Dr Ojala said work on this programme had been paused while HNZ awaited a decision on the preferred option for the new Dunedin hospital.
"Once this option is finalised, we expect the programme to gather pace, and we have enlisted further support from our regional infrastructure colleagues as we continue to deliver a South Island health service for our patients."
A completion date for the full programme of works was yet to be finalised, he said.
Over the past few months, the Otago Daily Times has reported about a range of problems at Dunedin Hospital.
In November, anaesthetist Dr James Clark said the issues had been ongoing, and that month’s leaking in the main theatre store for sterile equipment — which caused a partial collapse of the ceiling — was just the latest example of the hospital’s woes.
Apart from dealing with issues where sterile equipment was stored, there were also problems with the area where equipment was sterilised, he said.
The government last year announced it was replacing the new Dunedin hospital project with either a scaled-down version of the inpatients building at the former Cadbury’s site or a retrofit of the existing hospital.
The government is yet to announce its decision.
Delayed health projects
— Keeping the Lights on — Stage 2 (Dunedin Hospital transition programme maintenance: Critical Infrastructure Works): 12 quarters.
— Health Finance, Procurement and Information Management System (FPIM): 8 quarters.
— Regional Collaborative Community Care (RCCC): 8 quarters.
— Hutt Valley Te Whare Ahuru Acute Mental Health Unit (Tranche 1) Infrastructure: 7 quarters.
— New Dunedin hospital: 6 quarters.
— Source: June 2024 Quarterly Investment Report Information Release
