Palmerston North Regional Hospital able to support more patients

Charge nurse Debbie Perry (left), William Wood, Jeff Brown and Orphee Mickalad tour the new facilities.

Palmerston North Regional Hospital will be able to support more patients with the opening of two new facilities.

The two new facilities are for MidCentral patients requiring acute care.

On Friday, the MP for Palmerston North, Tangi Utikere, cut the ribbon at the opening of MidCentral’s new Emergency Department Observation Area (EDOA) and Medical Assessment and Planning Unit (MAPU). Several local stakeholders were in attendance to celebrate the facilities being successfully used for patient care.

MP Tangi Utikere cutting the ribbon at the official opening of the new MAPU and EDOA facilities.

The larger facilities have expanded the number of patient beds available and were developed to improve the flow of patient care so people can be seen sooner and be better supported in their recovery.

Once construction was completed, the MAPU was immediately opened to patients, so the opening ceremony was held at the building’s front entrance to limit any disruption. Stakeholders were able to watch an in-depth video tour, which is also available for the public to see on Te Whatu Ora – MidCentral’s Facebook page.

District director of Te Whatu Ora MidCentral, Dr Jeff Brown, was thrilled with the new space and impressed with how much it is already impacting patient care.

“As our rohe grows, so does the demand for health services. It remains imperative patients are able to be rapidly assessed so they can receive the care they require.”

He is thankful to everyone who contributed to the project.

“This includes our contractors constructing and renovating the facilitates, those who have worked hard behind the scenes and the many staff who have contributed. This and our other capital projects are designed to support the growing need for healthcare in our rohe. We need to meet the increase in patients we are seeing at Palmerston North Hospital, from both our district and our neighbouring areas.”