St John and Pinnacle Midlands Health Network team up in South Taranaki

St John care paramedics will be able to provide face-to-face assessments for patients after hours. Photo / Bevan Conley

A new free service will enable South Taranaki residents to seek non-emergency medical help from noon to midnight, seven days a week.

Pinnacle Midlands Health Network (MHN) has joined forces with St John to provide the after-hours service.

Those living within the region will now be able to phone their GP outside normal working hours and a trained nurse will do a phone assessment, then connect the person with the appropriate health services.

St John will be able to respond to the call via car-based extended care paramedics (ECPs) who can provide face-to-face assessments of patients.

The service is being offered through Avon Medical Centre, Dr R.G. Radich, Mountainview Medical, Ngāti Ruanui Healthcare, Ngāti Ruanui Pātea Medical Centre, Opunake Medical Centre and Regan Street Health Centre.

Pinnacle MHN regional services general manager Justin Butcher said Pinnacle funded the service to ensure the people of South Taranaki could get care in their community rather than making an unnecessary trip to Hawera Hospital's emergency department for non-emergency health conditions.

Butcher, who is also an intensive care paramedic, is very familiar with the emergency department environment.

"It's critical to me that people in our more rural communities can easily access the care and support they need after hours, while preserving the emergency department for true emergencies only."

St John intensive care paramedic Roger Blume said the initiative was a great example of organisations partnering to improve health outcomes for patients.

"This initiative provides the most appropriate care closer to home for patients with non-life-threatening conditions. ECPs can assess and treat patients with minor wounds, a blocked urinary catheter, a chest infection that may require antibiotics and many other clinical problems."