Grand opening: $40 million Kaweka Hospital opens in Hastings

The grand opening on Friday at the new private hospital in Hastings. Photo / Paul Taylor

A new $40 million private hospital which will offer a wide range of surgeries and specialist care has opened in Hastings - opposite Hawke's Bay Hospital.

Kaweka Hospital was officially opened on Friday morning with Health Minister Andrew Little cutting the ribbon.

It will help meet high demand for surgeries across Hawke's Bay with capacity to conduct 5000 surgical procedures a year.

While the bulk of its surgeries will be within the private health sector, the hospital has a contract with the nearby public hospital to conduct about 1200 public procedures each year.

Patients will begin using the facility from late August following final fit-out and training of staff.

The hospital currently boasts four operating theatres and 10 inpatient beds - each with their own ensuite - as well as other bells and whistles.

Health Minister Andrew Little was on hand to open the facility. Photo / Paul Taylor

The state-of-the-art facility on Canning Rd will also undergo a big expansion in the future with a further investment of $60 million.

Kaweka Hospital managing director Dr Colin Hutchison said residents in Hawke's Bay now had greater access to surgical healthcare.

"Kaweka Hospital will ensure more Hawke's Bay residents can get access to surgical procedures faster, which ultimately improves the health and wellbeing of the region.

"The private health sector is here to support the public sector.

"Although the public sector provides the bulk of healthcare, as a partner to Te Whatu Ora [Health New Zealand] we can also provide some public capacity."

The hospital has a team of 40 surgical and non-surgical specialists including in the fields of ear, nose and throat (ENT), general surgery, gynaecology, urology, ophthalmology and gastroenterology.

Inside one of the operating theatres at the new hospital. Photo / Supplied

They will be supported by a 75-strong team of technicians, nurses, and other staff.

Kaweka Hospital is being built across two stages including the $40 million stage one project which has now been completed, and has allowed the hospital to open its doors.

Stage two is hoped to be completed by the end of 2024 and will cost a further $60 million and be built across three levels.

Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said the opening of the hospital on Friday was great to see.

"It has been exciting to watch with anticipation the development of this much-needed additional Hawke's Bay community hospital, which will be vital to the health and well-being of our people, delivering critical services to our people today and for generations into the future."

Kaweka Hospital board chairman and ENT specialist Stephen Toynton said the initial idea for the private hospital came from a group of senior local doctors, who wanted to increase access to healthcare facilities in the region.

When completed in 2024, the stage two expansion will feature a new radiology suite with MRI, CT and breast imaging as well as a new cardiac catheterisation laboratory.