Queenstown Medical Centre wants to run the primary care services at the Southern District Health Board's (SDHB) proposed Integrated Family Healthcare Centre, which will replace Lakes District Hospital.
QMC chief executive Richard Macharg said the practice had made a submission to the SDHB's discussion document on its proposal to redevelop Lakes District Hospital into an Integrated Family Healthcare Centre.
QMC wanted to be part of the centre by providing general practice, accident and medical services, district and community nursing and co-ordinate and administrate out-patient clinics, he said.
"We believe the SDHB model of an Integrated Family Health Centre has merits, especially the positioning of general practice/primary care at its core.
However, we also took note of the significant concerns raised by many parties locally about this model and accordingly proposed an alternative solution in our submission to the SDHB."
A Queenstown Health Trust could be set up and be contracted by the SDHB to provide emergency care and inpatient care, including hospice and respite care.
"This would enable the community to become involved in donations, fundraising and support of the Queenstown Hospital without any commercial limitations through the involvement of a private operator."
Dr Macharg said an experienced health administrator should lead the proposed Queenstown Health Trust.
The integrated centre could also be expanded to house surgical, maternity, health professional teaching and training and mental health.
"Our proposed model continues the ideal of general practice as the core service but also proposes a significant role for community governance and provision of public hospital services, enhanced and integrated hospital facilities and a role for a local trust and individuals to contribute to under-resourced areas," he said.
The centre would be modelled on Dunstan Hospital.
"This would be an integrated care centre in which true primary, secondary and private, public partnership would exist and result in significant enhancement of patient care while both clinical and fiscal efficiencies would be forthcoming," he said.
Admission would be through a general practice with only emergency cases being transferred to the Emergency Department (ED).
"The populist argument that the Queenstown public should have access to free ED services for all ailments is ignoring financial reality, government policy and evolving medical care models," he said.
A reorganisation of Lakes District Hospital was driven by budgetary necessity and was inevitable, he said.
The cost of medical cover at Lakes District Hospital had increased from $240,000 a year in 2003 to well over $2 million in 2010.
QMC's service had been adversely affected by the hospital's inefficient, increasingly expensive provision of primary health care, he said.
