Dunedin's leaking hospital has been described as "third world" by a Central Otago man who visited his mother there over the holidays.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) has now apologised for the "disruption" and said its $23.6 million urgent interim repair and waterproofing work programme continued at the ageing hospital.
Most recently, Nathan — the Otago Daily Times agreed not to use his last name — said after his mother spent 18 days in Christchurch Hospital she was transferred to Dunedin and the difference between the two facilities was stark.
Christchurch’s hospital was like a "five-star hotel" in comparison, Nathan said.
When he was visiting the Dunedin hospital’s eighth-floor stroke ward at Christmas, water was dripping through a light fitting in the ceiling.
Staff told him "it’s just a daily thing" at the hospital.
When he returned the following day, a plastic tube had been rigged up, channelling the water into a wheelie bin.
"The state of the place is third world."
"We apologise for the disruption caused to patients and staff due to the leak above one of the beds in the stroke ward on Christmas Day at Dunedin Hospital," Mr Keogh said.
Once the issue had been identified, a plumber was immediately called, he said.
A fault with the air conditioning system was the cause.
The plumber fixed the issue and returned the following day to confirm the fix had worked.
No patients were admitted to the bed space while HNZ dealt with the issue, he said.
"Just like the people of Dunedin and the Southern region, Health New Zealand is looking forward to the delivery of a new hospital that will meet their health needs into the future.
"We have been working urgently to develop a solution that delivers modern, fit-for-purpose health facilities that enhance clinical safety and enables new models of care, that can be achieved within the budget set out by ministers."
In the interim, the $23.6m "critical infrastructure works programme" was under way to ensure the present hospital remained safe and functioning up until the opening of the new Dunedin hospital, he said.
"The focus of this programme is on addressing necessary and urgent remediation of infrastructure such as pipes, ventilation, electrical services and an ongoing water-proofing programme of works," he said.
Last month, the ODT reported a leak in the ageing hospital caused a partial ceiling collapse that left water streaming into a room where sterile surgery equipment is stored.
Staff said the disruption it caused was just another example of a long series of challenges disheartened clinicians faced.
In October, the ODT reported the concerns of an appalled senior doctor who said water began coursing down walls over medical equipment while patients recovered from surgery as the hospital failed to cope with heavy rain.
In September, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop came to Dunedin to announce the new hospital under construction in the city centre could approach $3 billion and upgrades to other regional hospitals would be at risk if the project’s budget blowout was not addressed.
Work was paused at the site while two options were considered to bring the project back within the project’s $1.88b budget.
Either the main inpatient building under construction could be drastically scaled back, or the new build could be dropped altogether in favour of a staged development on the old hospital site, they said.
The latter option has been panned by clinicians.
HNZ presented Dr Reti and Mr Bishop with new plans and options for the project earlier this month.
Announcement of a decision has not yet been made.
