Tova O’Brien: Health minister fails to name another doctorless Northland hospital
Saturday, 3 August 2024
Tova O’Brien is Stuff’s Chief Political Correspondent and host of the political podcast, Tova. Listen to the latest episode, ‘These questions are revolting’ - an interview with Children’s Minister Karen Chhour, here.
ANALYSIS: Another Northland hospital has been doctorless after-hours, for two years, and the Health Minister failed to mention it when asked by Stuff this week.
Shane Reti had initially been unable to say how many hospitals were operating at the same acute level as Dargaville, and when he did eventually provide the list, Rawene Hospital in Hokianga wasn’t included.
At the first big National Party conference since getting into government, Christopher Luxon told Stuff he still has confidence in Reti.
Shane Reti this week, didn’t know how many hospitals were operating at doctorless levels - like Dargaville.
When asked by Stuff on Tuesday, Reti said, “I’d have to look at that, I can’t give you that here”.
Pushed on whether he should know that, he said, “no I shouldn’t because there’s a large number of hospitals including peripheral hospitals so I’d have to go back and have a look”.
That didn’t seem good enough for the prime minister, who said he expects his health minister to know exactly what’s happening with health services across the country.
Asked if it was a problem that Reti didn’t know, the prime minister said, “he’ll be onto it tomorrow”.
The PM’s rark up appeared to work.
Come Wednesday when Stuff asked again how many hospitals were operating without doctors overnight, Reti listed Dargaville, Kenepuru and Buller.
No mention though of Rawene Hospital in Hokianga, it serves an extremely remote, high deprivation population of about 7500 people.
It hasn’t had a doctor after-hours - like Dargaville - for two years.
Reti said he didn’t get it wrong by failing to include Rawene, he said the question he was addressing was about which hospitals were using telehealth provisions.
However, that wasn’t the question he answered, it was specifically about how many hospitals were operating without doctors.
And Rawene is using telehealth - all the time.
Despite saying that he was aware of the shortages at Rawene and having made a big deal of it in Opposition to beat up on Labour - at the time he said it was “not acceptable” - Reti pointed to his officials.
He said if Rawene Hospital was using telehealth he would have expected Health NZ to have included that in the answer they had provided to him - and they hadn’t. He said he will be checking with Health NZ why not and whether telehealth was being used by the hospital to cover after hours services.
Stuff spoke to the chief executive of the Rawene Hospital, Margaret Broodkoorn, who said she was disappointed.
She said they would have expected to have been included on that list from Health NZ and the minister but that they often tend to be forgotten about.
The Prime Minister hasn’t wasted any time getting rid of underperforming ministers; Melissa Lee was sacked from Broadcasting, and Penny Simmonds was sacked from Disability Issues.
When he was PM, Sir John Key also had short shrift. He told Stuff that Luxon has a ruthless streak, “he’d have to, that’s just the nature of getting to that job.”
Luxon said he does believe Reti is across his brief and that he’s working in an incredibly complex system.
Reti agreed, “yes I am over it, all over health services in New Zealand.”
Health NZ told Stuff Rawene Hospital is not owned or operated by Health NZ so is not covered by the Health NZ-funded telehealth service.
But Rawene Hospital says the bulk of its funding is public and regardless, if you’re a patient is a hospital is a hospital is a hospital is a hospital.