Expectant mothers who usually attend antenatal clinics at Dunedin Hospital will receive their care across the road at the former Bowling Green Tavern for the next two months.
The change of venue, from October 1 to November 27, is to allow worn corridor carpet to be replaced with more hygienic vinyl in the Queen Mary Maternity Centre.
While the work is being carried out, the antenatal clinic space on the second floor will be used for patient rooms, freeing the area near where the carpet needs to be replaced.
The former tavern, on the corner of Cumberland and Frederick Sts, is owned by the University of Otago and was designated as a community-based assessment centre during the recent swine flu outbreak.
The Otago District Health Board has advised that as well as improving infection prevention and control, the new flooring will be safer, as the carpet has come free from its backing.
It is expected to be a noisy project, as layers of carpet glue are ground down in preparation for vinyl laying.
Staff will be advised when the noisiest work is to take place.
Noise was an issue recently for Public Health South staff at Wakari Hospital, where asbestos tiles were being replaced on the first floor.
Property services manager Warren Taylor said its second floor offices were uninhabitable because of the noise and staff had relocated or undertaken community work during the noisy periods.
