Sources have told the ODT level 6 of the new inpatient building could be scrapped, along with psychogeriatric beds earmarked for the floor.
Clinical space could also be further reduced by a move to axe a separate building for generators and instead house them in the main inpatient building.
The options were presented to the government this week after consultants and Australian construction giant CPB completed a cost-saving exercise triggered in July, when an initial price for the then 11-floor inpatient building came in significantly over budget.
Grey Power Otago president Jo Millar said she was livid to hear psychogeriatric beds were under threat.
"What this government has to understand is that this is a hospital that services the whole of the southern region.
"We’re not building a city hospital."
She was concerned about the pressures removing the psychogeriatric ward at the new hospital would have on the greater health system.
"Somewhere along the line, those people have to be looked after.
"So, you know, what are they going to do? Chuck them into rest-homes and overburden the rest-homes?"
Aged Care Association chief executive Tracey Martin said any reduction to the psychogeriatric ward would be the "stupidest idea" she had heard in a while.
"We definitely see the need for such care becoming more acute as our population increases.
"I would like to know on what evidential basis they would be pushing ahead with this on."
The new Dunedin hospital plans have experienced multiple changes to the psychogeriatric ward.
In December 2022, the then-Labour government addressed a $200 million budget blowout by announcing a project funding boost of $110m along with $90m saving in costs achieved by making changes to the hospital design.
This included the loss of half the planned beds for mental health services for older people (MHSOP), leaving the new hospital with 12 — the same number as the present hospital.
After public outcry, the number of MHSOP beds was increased to 24 in another redesign of the hospital in September last year — only for the number of beds to be back under discussion again now.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) got fast-track consent in February for a services gantry, which would extend from the Bow Lane block over Castle St to connect heating, cooling and diesel fuel supply pipework and back-up communications infrastructure to the inpatient building.
Sources have told the ODT the Bow Lane block proposal is now likely to be scrapped, and the ancillary services incorporated into the main build instead.
Earlier this week, a letter signed by 44 clinical directors was sent to Health Minister Shane Reti, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon urging the government not to make further clinical cuts to the project.
Last month, the government announced plans to either scale down the project or retrofit the existing hospital.
HNZ head of infrastructure delivery Blake Lepper said yesterday HNZ had been instructed to work urgently to develop options that could be achieved within the budget and would deliver modern, fit-for-purpose health facilities that would enhance clinical safety and enable new models of care.
"We welcome the clear parameters and additional funding ministers have provided and are working at pace to assess the impact of changes and recommend a preferred option to them. We have been instructed to complete this work over the coming weeks.
"We will consult with critical stakeholders, including clinical leaders, to ensure we understand the benefits and risks before a final decision is made."
