When the new rest home in Tapanui opens later this year, it will make West Otago Health one of the biggest employers in the West Otago area.
The non-profit community owned medical centre and aged care facility's interim manager, Marianne Parks, said the $3.5million facility the community had planned since 2001 was always expected to provide jobs for the area.
''We have said that all along, when the place is fully operational we will be one of the main employers in the area.''
Once Ribbonwood was operational, the entire facility would require 17.61 fulltime equivalent employees: 10.585 at the medical centre and 7.025 at the rest home.
But as staffing would require ''three shifts a day, seven days a week'' at the rest home, many of the positions were expected to be part time. Mrs Parks said the staff would probably number about 28.
She said advertising of jobs for the facility would start at the beginning of next week.
''I would like to think that the majority of positions can be filled by people that currently reside within the West Otago area, but the issue at the end of the day for me is making sure that we've got the right people - the right people with the right skills.''
A 2009 feasibility study found the number of people aged 65 and over in West Otago was expected to double between 2006 and 2026.
The aged care facility could provide for 14 residents. Five people had already met the needs assessment criteria and two of them were in aged care facilities outside the community at present.
West Otago Health had planned for an 80% occupancy rate, Mrs Parks said.
The medical centre opened in August last year and the rest home would open ''this side of Christmas, definitely''.
And though no targeted opening date for the rest home had ever been set, the certification process had required more work than was originally anticipated, she said.
An auditing process was ''done and dusted'', and sent to the Ministry of Health earlier this month.
And once West Otago Health received certification from the ministry, it would enter into a funding agreement with the Southern District Health Board, Mrs Parks said.
Once staff were in place, Mrs Parks said ''the green light to accept residents'' would come from the district health board.
''Once we know who our employees are going to be ... we will know very quickly what the opening date is going to be.''
