Is there any point holding district health board meetings outside Dunedin or Invercargill?
Whether the expense of holding meetings in other centres was worth it was considered by Southern District Health Board members considering their 2012 meetings schedule yesterday.
Chairman Joe Butterfield said public interest in DHB meetings was so slight he questioned whether the extra expense was justified.
Disruption to staff members was significant, and the smaller centres did not have the videolink technology of Dunedin and Invercargill.
The board held two board meetings in Queenstown this year, which made sense given the interest over the future of Wakatipu health services, but the "dust had settled" on that issue now.
Two full board meetings and associated committee meetings were scheduled for Queenstown/Central Otago next year, but Mr Butterfield requested a "question mark" be put next to the second set, in September.
His view found favour with board members who echoed his comments that the cost and effort was not worthwhile when the public appeared not to notice.
However board members Branko Sijnja and Kaye Crowther said it was important to hold some meetings in other centres.
