Construction of Rotorua Hospital's new mental health inpatient unit is in the final stages of completion. Photo / Megan Wilson
Construction of Rotorua Hospital's new mental health inpatient unit is in the final stages of completion. Photo / Megan Wilson
The construction of Rotorua’s new mental health and addictions inpatient facility is in the “final stages” and will open to patients by mid-year.
The project at Rotorua Hospital has been beset by delays and cost increases since it was announced six years ago.
Lakes Mauri Ora has been built onthe main hospital campus to replace Te Whare Oranga Tangata o Whakaue, the hospital’s 14-bed acute mental health and addictions facility.
The new facility will have 16 beds upon opening, and three further rooms which could be used to add additional beds in the future.
The Rotorua Daily Post reported in December 2024 that the facility was expected to be finished by the end of 2025.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora also confirmed at the time the budget had increased from $33m to $50m.
Ground preparation works started on the site of the new facility in November 2022. At that time, Health NZ Lakes said the project would cost $31m.
In 2020, then Health Minister Chris Hipkins said construction of the new facility was likely to start in the second half of 2021 and was expected to take about two years to complete.
Covid-19 delayed the start of construction until 2022.
Health NZ Lakes District group director of operations Alan Wilson told the Rotorua Daily Post on January 14 the project remained with the $50m budget and construction was in the “final stages of completion”.
“Technical systems are being commissioned, landscaping has started and final inspections and approvals are being completed.”
He said the new facility would open to patients by the middle of the year after a formal building opening, with timing to be confirmed.
Rotorua’s Piringa Wellness chief executive Kirsty Maxwell-Crawford said it was a “much-needed facility” and she was looking forward to it opening.
Piringa Wellness is a non-clinical service that works with whānau with “very complex mental health needs, predominantly Māori”, she said.
“We have clients that come out of the [hospital] ward and are not well enough to live in their own home or don’t have any housing options.”
She said it had a residential service for respite, short or longer-term care.
Some residential clients sometimes spent time in the hospital’s inpatient facility before returning to Piringa Wellness, she said.
Maxwell-Crawford said the service was excited that the new facility was designed to be “more conducive for healing and recovery for people who are so acutely unwell that they need to be in the ward”.
While it was good the number of beds would increase, the number was “nowhere near what is needed to meet current demands”, she said.
She said Mauri Ora could be an opportunity for Health NZ to consider increasing the clinical capacity of community mental health residential services, “so we can keep people out of needing to be in the wards as much as we possibly can”.
“We’re hopeful that this is the beginning of a wider strategy to invest in multiple solutions to support mental-health care here in Rotorua.”
Te Arawa tribal health authority Te Mana Hauora o Te Arawa Trust co-chairwoman Huhana Clayton-Evans said the facility was “supposed to be finished already”.
In her view, the “extra couple of beds don’t seem to warrant the cost and the delay of the massive new facility on Pukeroa hill”, she said.
Health NZ Lakes District group director of operations Alan Wilson. Photo / Laura Smith
In response to their comments, Wilson said Health NZ recognised staff and the community were excited for Lakes Mauri Ora to open.
“Right now, we are taking the time to ensure everything is right with the building, adding the finishing touches and focusing on staff training in the more advanced features of the new facility such as alarm systems.”
Wilson said inpatient hospital beds were “only one part of a robust mental health service”.
“It is increasingly necessary to have suitable residential care beds in the community.
“Work is ongoing to increase the range and number of residential care beds in the Lakes community.”
Wilson said Health NZ was having discussions about the early and appropriate provision of residential care services, in addition to community mental health services.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.
