Health centre move completed

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 599, 15 August 1995, Page 8

Health centre move completed

by Amiria Teki Staff began moving equipment into the new Waimarino Health Centre which opened its doors for service to the community last Wednesday morning. The Waimarino Health Clinic finally closed its door last Thursday from having been a hospital/health centre for more than 73 years. The official opening of the new centre will take place in about two weeks, when it is expected that all finishing touches and equipment will be in place and when staff have had an opportunity to settle in. Rowena Kui, the clinic' s manager, and her staff have had a big job, not only with staffing organisation, but with equipment packing, arranging transport and still seeing to it that the on-going patient care has continued, at the standard and efficiency that is expected. Mrs Kui said that she will be responsible for a staff of 1 7 which will include a cook, cleaner and general maintenance person. In addition there will be the continued services of the pink ladies and the voluntary personnel, who do the meals on wheels. The district nurses and public health service will continue and Kathy Dodds will run the daytime activities group as she has done up at the hospital. Staff numbers have been reduced — nine personnel have been dropped from the staff some of whom took voluntary redundancy. There will be five staff nurses, three midwives and a receptionist. The new unit contains five beds, a delivery suite for the obstetrics unit, all the specialist services which will be retained including the physiotherapy and X-ray departments, although the X-ray department will still remain up

the hill until emergency power equipment arrives from Christchurch within the next two weeks. The mortuary service will also continue from the same site. As with many new buildings and new situations some problems have occurred. In particular, the physiotherapy unit is too small for the rehabilitation sector of the unit. Don Allomes said he had approached management from the outset pointing out that the room was too short for treatment of amputee rehabilitation. patients. It is hoped problems such as this will be ironed out as soon as possible. On Sunday Tom Hawira conducted a closing ceremony and blessing of the old hospital. The last person to give birth up at the old hospital unit was Rae Deadman. She and Michael have a son who was born on Tuesday 8 August, weighing in at 81b 12oz. Mrs Deadman said she almost had wee Luke in the car. However, they made it OK. Mrs Kui deli vered Luke. Quite appropriate as her last duty in the old unit and the Waimarino health centre was to presCnt Rae and Michael with a gift voucher as the last 'customers' of the old hospital. The Bulletin is planning to take a look down memory lane with regard to the old hospital and would welcome any input from individuals with a yarn to tell.