HOSPITAL VISITING

All hospital visitors are recommended to wear a medical face mask. For more information about visiting: Visitors and family. See our COVID-19 page for general COVID-19 advice, detailed hospital visiting guidelines and COVID-19 tests.

See West Coast COVID-19 vaccination clinics for info on vaccinations link COVID-19 Vaccination • West Coast • Healthpoint

Last updated:
16 September 2022

Fewer visitor restrictions now apply

For visitors to all facilities (effective from and last updated on 16 September 2022)

Some visitor restrictions for all Te Whatu Ora Te Tai o Poutini West Coast health facilities remain in place, but we have relaxed others.

There is still a heightened risk to vulnerable people in hospital and so people must continue to wear a mask when visiting any of our facilities and follow other advice designed to keep patients, staff and other visitors safe.

Kia whakahaumaru te whānau, me ngā iwi katoa – this is to keep everybody safe:

  • Visitors or support people must not visit our facilities if they are unwell. Do not visit if you have recently tested positive for COVID-19 and haven’t completed your isolation period.
  • Patients in single rooms may have more than one visitor while patients in multi-bed rooms can have one visitor only per patient to ensure there is no overcrowding.
  • People can have one or two support people to accompany them to outpatients appointments.
  • Women in labour in a birthing suite, in Te Nīkau Hospital’s Maternity Ward and in Buller’s Kawatiri Maternity Unit can have the usual support people, subject to space, for the duration of their stay in our facilities.
  • Eating or drinking at the bedside is at the discretion of the Clinical Nurse Manager. Visitors must not eat or drink in multibed rooms because of the increased risk when multiple people remove their mask in the same space.
  • Hand sanitiser is available and must be used.

Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding as our staff work hard to protect and care for some of the most vulnerable in our community.

Mask wearing

  • Surgical/medical masks must be worn at all sites, except in counselling, mental health and addiction services where it’s on a case-by-case agreement with patients. Masks will be provided if you don’t have one. In higher-risk environments, people, including young children, may not be able to visit if they cannot wear a mask.
  • Any member of the public with a mask exemption is welcome in all our facilities when attending to receive health care and *treatment. Please show your mask exemption card and appointment letter to staff at the entrance. *Treatment includes coming into the Emergency Department, outpatient appointments, surgery or a procedure.

Visiting patients with COVID-19

  • People are able to visit patients who have COVID-19 but they must wear an N95 mask – this will be provided if you don’t have one.
  • Other methods of communication will be facilitated e.g. phone, Facetime, Zoom, WhatsApp etc where visits aren’t possible.

You must NOT visit our facilities if you

  • are COVID-19 positive
  • are unwell. Please stay home if you have a tummy bug or cold or flu/COVID-19-like symptoms (even if you’ve tested negative for COVID-19).

Te Whatu Ora West Coast Aged Residential Care facilities

Visitors are welcome at our Aged Care Residential facilities, subject to the space available. All visitors must wear a surgical mask.

More COVID-19 information

Transfers of patients between facilities

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RE Official Information request WCDHB 9486

I refer to your email dated 29 October requesting the information under the Official Information Act from West Coast DHB regarding transfers from Buller Health to Te Nīkau Grey Hospital and Health Centre as outlined in the eleven questions below.

1. How many patients were transferred by helicopter from Buller Hospital to Greymouth Hospital each month in the 12 months to June 30, 2020?
2. What does a helicopter transfer from Buller to Grey cost?
3. What were the individual monthly costs of those helicopter transfers for the 12 months to June 30, 2020, who paid (ie individual patients, DHB, ACC, St John) and how much did each of those groups pay in the 12 months?
4. How many patients were transferred by ambulance from Buller Hospital to Greymouth Hospital in the same period?
5. What does an ambulance transfer from Buller to Grey cost?
6. What were the individual monthly costs of those ambulance transfers for the same period, who paid and how much did each group pay in total (a breakdown again please)?
7. How many patients were transferred by helicopter from Buller Hospital to Greymouth Hospital for the periods: July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019; July 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020; July 1, 2019 to October 31, 2019?
8. What were the individual monthly costs of those transfers, who paid and how much did each group pay for each period (ie for the 12 months to June 30, 2019, the five months to October 31, 2020, and the five months to October 31, 2019?)
9. How many patients were transferred by ambulance from Buller Hospital to Greymouth Hospital for the periods: July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019; July 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020; July 1, 2019 to October 31, 2019?
10. What were the individual monthly costs of those transfers, who paid and how much did each group pay for each period (ie the 12 months to June 30, 2019, the five months to October 31, 2020 and the five months to October 31, 2019)?
11. How many patients were transferred from Buller Hospital to Greymouth Hospital by DHB car in each of the time periods provided above, what did those car transfers cost for each time period, who paid (ie patients, DHB, St John, ACC) and how much did each of those groups pay?

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Page last updated: 8 December 2020

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