Wellington's troubled child cancer service has been given a lifeline with an agreement between the Capital and Coast and Canterbury District Health Boards to join forces to provide a "safe, quality" service.
The Wellington unit has struggled for some time but the surprise resignation of a senior oncologist
earlier this year pushed services to the limit.
Patients in the lower North Island were being sent to Auckland and Christchurch as Capital and Coast tried to resolve the staffing crisis.
It was revealed last month that Canterbury District Health Board would work with the embattled board to back up and support its specialised child cancer services.
At a meeting of key clinicians and managers of both DHBs yesterday the details of a memorandum of understanding for a joint paediatric oncology service were established.
In a joint statement the boards said the memorandum needed to be formally ratified, but they had agreed in principle to the concept of a single child cancer service operating from two child cancer units in Christchurch and Wellington.
"We are satisfied that we now have the basis of a safe, quality, sustainable service for children and their families in our region," Capital and Coast clinical director of child health, Dr Graeme Lear said.
"I would like to thank the clinical teams from both DHBs for the tremendous amount of collaboration that has assisted us in getting to this point. We are looking forward to the years of good work that will come from a closer working relationship."
The Canterbury board's chief medical officer Nigel Millar said there had been a firm commitment from managers and clinicians in both centres to preserve a tertiary level child cancer service in Wellington for children and their families.
- NZPA
