SDHB

The 2009 swine flu pandemic cost the New Zealand hospital sector about $31 million, a University of Otago study has found.

A near doubling of patient complaints to the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) is not a "shock horror story", Southern District Health Board deputy chairman Paul Menzies says.

Managers were "quite ambitious" in their initial predictions of gains from a $2.7 million observation unit in Dunedin Hospital's emergency department (ED), and these have been revised down, a Southern District Health Board committee heard yesterday.

The Southern District Health Board is hiring a chief financial officer, two years after removing the position.

The Southern District Health Board has announced an all-female line-up to run new Otago-Southland combined clinical departments.

The Southern District Health Board has called in more outside help to resolve issues at Dunedin Hospital, seconding a National Health Board service manager to improve surgical services.

Merging clinical departments at Southern District Health Board "smacks of a takeover of Otago by Southland", a submitter on the proposal told the board.

Good patient care is being achieved through the "largely invisible" and unsustainable efforts of staff, a report about Southern District Health Board work practices says.

In a case of spending money to save it, Southern District Health Board is shelling out thousands of dollars to a business services company.

Southern District Health Board chief executive Carole Heatly was paid between $120,000 and $129,999 in her first four months in the job.