Mr Thomson was speaking at a public meeting in Dunedin Hospital yesterday, organised to update the community on the commissioner team’s progress.
Mr Thomson, who is also a member of the powerful Southern Partnership Group which governs the $300 million Dunedin Hospital redevelopment, said there was no agenda to downgrade the hospital.
"All I can say is that we as a group [of commissioners] are unaware of any proposal to downgrade the hospital," Mr Thomson said.
Professional colleges had rules about the number of patients doctors had to treat to be qualified, and that meant low population areas found it difficult to sustain some specialties.
It could mean procedures and services were still provided in Dunedin, as part of a South Island service. It was a complicated issue, and was not well understood by the public, Mr Thomson said.
People had to remember the new hospital was being built for the needs of the future, not for 2016. Several people urged the board to improve its communication, both with patients and the general public.
Mr Thomson said it was difficult to beef up the board’s communications team without the media submitting an Official Information Act request for the cost, and then "presenting it as spin-doctoring".
The board is considering setting up a "people’s panel" with potentially several thousand members connected online.
In addition, nominations will be called soon for a new consumer council.
Deputy commissioner Graham Crombie spoke about an increased focus on empathy and kindness at SDHB.
About 30 people attended the meeting.
Commissioner Kathy Grant was unable to attend.
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Comments
It should not be all about population: demographics of the population should be considered as to distance to services and support.
There are two threats to the services being delivered in Dunedin:
1: A government which simply wants to cut the cost of health delivery in the south.
2: The ongoing costs to SDHB of all the consultants and yes men being foisted upon us who have a singular message. Get used to less Dunedin, you've had it too good for too long.
There may well not be a formal proposal to cut services in Dunedin, but when every costly report and every fly in sponger says Dunedin deserves less, then we all know where we are headed. Expensive, slow and dangerous transit to Christchurch or Auckland to get the care we receive in Dunedin today.
Lets not forget the government has committed to hundreds of millions to rebuild Christchurch hospitals. Someone needs to pay for that and in part it will be the well being of Dunedin patients.