Wānaka and the Upper Clutha region experience the inequalities of the district’s healthcare system more frequently than other parts such as Queenstown, and how that is handled is seen by some as crucial to the success of a proposed regional deal, but private investor Ross Copland has already outlined plans for a Southern Lakes base hospital as part of such a deal.
The proposed deal between Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC), Central Otago District Council (CODC) and Otago Regional Council (ORC) outlines potential changes and ideas aimed at helping the region grow economically and improving the quality of life.
The deal was proposed to meet part of the National Party’s campaign to deliver the shared objectives of central and local government more effectively.
But out of concern for the announced plans for a Queenstown base hospital, a local organisation and a doctor are calling for a single central hospital rather than a council trying to create smaller hospitals across the wider district.
Health Action Wanaka questioned the proposed Queenstown hospital site at the last QLDC council meeting, asking why other locations such as Cromwell were not considered, as they were far more under-served.
Local GP Dr Jim Reid, who headed the department of general practice and rural heath at the Dunedin School of Medicine for a decade, said the health inequalities in Wānaka came as a surprise despite his specialty.
"Even though I had headed the department, I had no idea of the inequality that exists with rural health in this area."
He mentioned the lack of services such as funded X-rays and blood tests, patients having to drive to Queenstown themselves if they could not afford private care.
"We have no access to a number of investigations, including X-ray. So if someone can’t afford an X-ray or an ultrasound, they have to drive to either Queenstown or Dunstan."
He believes Dunstan hospital is taking care of the region’s issues with limited accessibility to urgent care.
The hospital has more recently implemented after-hours urgent care from 6pm to 8am with the help of funding, which the council is trying to extend as a short-term solution.
Dr Reid feels that the region needs one hospital, rather than several created by each council around the region.
"The population in this area is now bigger than Invercargill and we do need a hospital that has a surgical facility and so forth.
"I think the ideal place is Cromwell ... It’s central, it would drain the Upper Clutha, it would drain Queenstown — Queenstown might still need a holding hospital — and it would serve Wānaka."
A more central location such as Cromwell would mean the distance travelled from each location within the district might not be exactly the same, but would be more accessible than what it was now, Dr Reid said.
Queenstown Lakes District Mayor Glyn Lewers said he understood the need for a regional deal but it would be a long process that might change over time as the the national and local economies tried to align.
One of the deal’s priorities is improving healthcare in the district as the region’s population grows and inequalities increase.
The regional plan has outlined opportunities for publicly funded health to partner with private clinics and investors, opening the doors for more available and affordable healthcare options.
Mr Lewers acknowledged Upper Clutha had encountered more healthcare disparities than other parts of the district, not only in terms of accessibility, but also a two-tiered system which required patients to pay for services in Wānaka that they did not need to pay for in Queenstown.
"What we find, because of our high visitor to resident ratio, is the usual models and population-based funding doesn’t work for us," he said.
Despite accessibility issues for the wider region, he justified the location of the new hospital by outlining the cost barriers and the "investor-ready" nature of Queenstown.
"If we look at Cromwell, Wānaka and Queenstown, no one centre will have the full suite of care and services that we will need. It would probably be a mixed shared model, and it just so happens Queenstown is the first one."
The opportunity was already there in Queenstown, the investment "ready to go", and the planning for the structure was well in advance, he said.
