The centre, a collaboration between the University of Otago, Otago Polytechnic Te Pūkenga and Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand (HNZ), is intended to help future-proof the health sector and train future medical staff.
Updated project costs were expected to be provided earlier this year, but the business case for the project is now due to be delivered by June.
A cabinet paper put the cost of the build at $51 million in 2021.
By August last year, this had increased to $115.5 million, with the possibility of increasing, because of inflation and a planned addition of two advanced medical learning floors for the University of Otago.
Project steering group convener Pete Hodgson said although any delay was costly, he was confident the building had a good chance of going ahead as planned.
"Then again if the costs are excessive — and we don’t know yet — one or other of the three contributing parties may say that’s a bridge too far."
The delay was due to a legal entanglement concerning land availability, Mr Hodgson said.
It was troublesome to have lost a couple of months, which meant the building, to be located in Dunedin’s new hospital complex, might open in 2028 rather than 2027.
The most important thing was that it was built before the new inpatient building, because of the need for the centre’s professional development unit, he said.
From doctors and nurses to midwives and physiotherapists, the centre would give students in the medical field the opportunity to learn alongside each other and gain a better understanding of each other’s roles, he said.
"Interprofessional education will mean that Dunedin’s role in New Zealand as a premier health science education centre will be further enhanced."
Funding for the project has not been a smooth process — last year a bill of $17 million reverted back to HNZ after being approved as a saving by mistake.
This occurred because the University of Otago had proposed to take over HNZ’s share of the cost of the interprofessional learning centre in order to free up funds for the new Dunedin hospital.
The proposal, never finalised, was withdrawn by the university but this update was not passed on to ministers.
"Accordingly, the record shows ministers approving a saving that did not, and does not, exist," an HNZ report from September stated.
The budget for the new Dunedin hospital — $1.58 billion — now includes $17 million earmarked for the project.
The hospital value management advice briefing written in December stated third-party financing was being considered and this would free up funds that could be used to meet possible future cost increases.
An HNZ spokesman said the ILC business case was currently being developed for mid-2023.
"Seventeen million dollars has been ring-fenced in the new Dunedin hospital budget to support interprofessional learning and the Te Whatu Ora Board will review its contribution to the ILC project as part of its consideration of the business case."
Third-party financing options would be investigated, but no decisions had been made.
Cost escalation was a risk for every public sector project and the three parties would consider the required budget based on the business case.
Otago University chief operating officer Stephen Willis said cost-sharing arrangements were being worked on.
No option for the division of costs had ever been formally endorsed, he said.
The project was also raised in a recent letter to Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich by Labour MPs David Clark, Ingrid Leary, Rino Tirikatene and Rachel Brooking, saying it was an issue the mayor should be "a lot more concerned" about than the $90 million worth of design changes to the new hospital they said did largely not affect clinical facilities and would not impact services.
"We are very keen that the interprofessional learning centre is approved and funded by our university, polytech and the health system."
Speaking to the Otago Daily Times on Thursday, Dr Clark said the centre was important for the future of healthcare and he wanted to ensure it would go ahead.
There was no reason to doubt it would not be delivered as planned, he said.
