Havelock North GP Maurice Jolly is unhappy the Hawke's Bay District Health Board is spending money selling itself while patients wait for treatment.
The 34-year veteran said the health board's Focused on Quality report, five of which were delivered to his practice, was a waste of money.
"Do I really want to know how many people they manage a year and how many adult medical beds there are?" Dr Jolly asked.
"All I know is that yesterday I had three people taken off lists.
"They don't deem it necessary for these people to be seen or they can't provide the service. One of them is actually a child referred by a paediatrician for a visual problem."
The 41-page report is billed by the board as aiming to give the Hawke's Bay community "relevant and useful information on the quality of health services being delivered in the province, including improvements and innovations" and challenges ahead.
Kate Coley, director of quality improvement and patient safety, said for the past three years all health boards were required to submit information to the Health Quality and Safety Commission.
"The value of Quality Accounts is to show and demonstrate each district health board's commitment to high-quality health care, what improvements are needed and what part the public and local communities play in making health services better and more responsive," she said.
The printing cost was $2720 for 500 copies and was produced in-house using photos on file, except for the front cover which was outsourced for about $400.
Hard copies were sent to GPs, libraries and the report was available online.
"We have also asked people for feedback about what matters to them and what they would like to see from a health care service through an online survey," Ms Coley said.
Dr Jolly said the publication was extravagant and the health board should concentrate on "meeting the need out there".