Rural hospitals

I visited Thames, Taumarunui and Te Kuiti this month.

At Thames I was able to hear about the desire of Te Korowai, a kaupapa primary care provider, to integrate into the local hospital and about how they would deliver a patient-centred service, very much in line with our strategic aspirations. We must include the development of our rural hospitals in our thinking for the site master plan.

My visit to Taumarunui highlighted the remoteness of this facility and the difficulty they had in recruiting general practitioners (GPs). We should rethink how primary care services are provided so that they are less dependent on GPs through the greater use of nurse practitioners and telemedicine.

I was impressed on my visit to Te Kuiti by how well integrated the local general practice was into the running of the service. This is a good model for other rural hospitals.