Vacancies force changes to some hospital services

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Photo: Ashburton Courier
Photo: Ashburton Courier
A rising number of nursing vacancies is putting pressure on Canterbury District Health Board’s acute and inpatient nursing workforce at Ashburton Hospital.

To minimise disruption to services, nursing staff from various outpatient, community, day surgical and education workforces are being redeployed to assist in the areas under pressure.

Ashburton Hospital is reviewing its outpatient clinic and community care bookings for the next six weeks, with urgent and acute care being prioritised.

CDHB rural health services manager Berni Marra, based at Ashburton Hospital, says acute and inpatient services will continue to be available and people should continue to access the care they need when they need it.

"This includes making their GP their first port of call you what to do and where to go if you need to be seen urgently.

"After hours people can call Healthline for general health advice on 0800 611 116 anytime.

"Where people may notice a difference is in the way other services are delivered in Ashburton.

"While our district nursing service continues, more clinics will be taking place virtually via telehealth, for example.

"We are also supporting our community and our services as we work through an active recruitment programme, including talent sourcing from overseas, multi-channel advertising across all job boards, targeted campaigns, recruitment open days and attendance at career expos."

Marra said as work continued to overcome this short-term challenge, the community could be confident they will continue to receive quality care from Ashburton teams.