The Doctors Bayfair has opened a new medical practice in Mount Maunganui.
The Doctors Bayfair has opened a new medical practice in Mount Maunganui.
The Doctors Bayfair has opened a Mount Maunganui medical practice with more consult rooms and a larger area for acute walk-ins.
The centre has future-proofed for growth in “one of the fastest growing regions” in New Zealand.
The company said the new 24/7 urgent healthcare service planned by the Government for Tauranga in 2026 would be “welcomed” by its teams.
Almost 10,000 enrolled patients have access to a bigger and “purpose-built” medical practice in Mount Maunganui.
The Doctors Bayfair - part of the Green Cross Health group - opened its new practice two months ago after one year of construction.
Its former 30-year-old building had become “increasingly outdated” and the decision was made to invest in a new facility rather than renovate an “ageing structure”, Green Cross Health said.
Medical centre manager Shamane Naidoo said: “It was a long time coming, but we’re so happy to finally be here.
“The new space allows us to better support the health needs of a rapidly growing community.”
Green Cross Health Bay of Plenty regional business manager Joe Rosser said the new building, at the same location at 42 Girven Rd, was modern and future-proofed for growth.
“This part of town is one of the fastest growing regions in the country so actually having the ability to take on more patients - not being constrained by the space - is a key thing.”
The practice now had nine consult rooms - up from six - and a “significantly enhanced” acute walk-in space which took up about “a third of the practice”.
It was also a training site for GP registrars and “having those extra rooms allows us to do that”, Rosser said.
The Doctors Bayfair has opened a new medical practice in Mount Maunganui.
Rosser said planning for the build started about six years ago, and the design was heavily influenced by its clinical teams in creating their workspace.
He said almost 10,000 patients were enrolled at The Doctors Bayfair and The Doctors Pāpāmoa which operated as one practice. Enrolled patients could use services at either clinic.
It was accepting enrolments for new patients and welcomed casual patients.
The old Doctors Bayfair in 2021. Photo / George Novak
A Green Cross Health press release said its new “purpose-built” medical centre was also home to Skin Spots, Your Pharmacy, and Habit Health.
The team includes eight GPs, 10 nurses, a nurse practitioner, a health improvement practitioner, a health coach, a skin doctor, and a psychologist.
He said its doctors were part of an after-hours roster and worked at Accident and Healthcare on Second Ave in Tauranga in the evenings or weekends “in addition to their normal work”.
“It’s something that adds quite a bit of pressure if you’re already working four or five days a week and then you’ve got to work on Saturday or Sunday.
“Ideally, we’d like to not have to participate in that roster and [having] that service standalone will be a massive benefit.”
The Government’s pre-Budget announcement also detailed new 24/7 urgent care services for Counties Manukau, Whangārei, Palmerston North, and Dunedin, and new daytime urgent care services in Lower Hutt, Invercargill, and Timaru — among other investments.
The Budget invested $164 million across four years into urgent and after-hours care nationwide.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Timesand the Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.
