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After hours contract goes to AngleseaA contract between Waikato District Health Board and Hamilton accident and medic Waikato DHB’s Community and Public Health Advisory Committee today ratified the $625,000 annual contract, starting from 1 July for three years. Planning and Funding general manager Brett Paradine said the agreement would assist primary health organisations (PHOs) to meet their after hours obligations to the public. Many primary care practices in Hamilton, Raglan, Te Awamutu, Cambridge, Morrinsville, Ngaruawahia and Huntly refer their patients to Anglesea after hours. The new contract provides a sound basis for this to continue. Anglesea will run the 11pm to 8am service, using at least one registered medic Waikato DHB called for proposals earlier this year to provide overnight primary health care general medical services in Hamilton following Anglesea Clinic’s decision in October last year to quit after providing more than 20 years’ service. Local doctors, who own and operate Anglesea Clinic, run the clinic on a rostered basis. GP shortages meant that to staff the overnight shift they needed to use expensive locums. On average, the clinic sees a dozen patients nightly during the week and up to 25 on weekend nights. The main criteria of the request for proposal was to reduce the barriers of cost of access for patients while delivering clinically led and safe services. Under the contract between Anglesea Clinic and Waikato DHB, children under six with or without a community services card, who previously paid $15-$20, will pay a flat fee of $5. Children aged six to 17 with a community services card will pay $39 (without a card $43), down from $55 and $60 and those over 18 with a card pay $53 (without $73), down from $70 and $85. The fees are frozen from 1 July 2010 until 1 January 2012. “This keeps the cost of access more reasonable for our population,” said Mr Paradine. “This is all about bringing better, sooner and more convenient care to those Waikato DHB is responsible for.” Waikato Hospital emergency department clinical director Dr John Bonning was a member of the evaluation panel, which considered the request for proposals. “The focus of the evaluation group was on quality,” said Mr Paradine. “The clinic was required to demonstrate the organisation met national standards for an accident and medical facility.” The deal should relieve some pressure on Waikato Hospital’s emergency department, which is seeing record numbers in its Hamilton waiting rooms. Estimates suggest about 56,000 people will have gone to Waikato Hospital’s emergency department when the financial year ends next week on 30 June – 2550 or 4.8 per cent up on the previous year. Health Waikato chief operating officer Jan Adams said she welcomed the contract and said she expected there would be some minor reductions in attendances at Waikato Hospital’s emergency department with the lower attendance costs at Anglesea. “What we’re hearing is that some people present at Waikato Hospital either because the service is free or because they could not afford to go to Anglesea. “We welcome this and look forward to continuing our long partnership with Anglesea and primary care so we can all get good health outcomes,” she said. Anglesea Clinic general manager Andrew Campus said the new contract would enable the clinic to staff the night shift without having to use GPs who would then have to work a full day at their surgery the next day. “Using locum doctors is not sustainable and expensive. This contract ensures we can run clinically sustainable 24/7 primary care services,” he said. END Date 23 June 2010 Photos are available to download from the photo library, keyword "Anglesea"
Mary Anne Gill |
al centre Anglesea Clinic will result in cheaper consultation fees and the continuation of clinically led safe after hours’ medical and nursing services in the city.
al practitioner and two registered nurses, for 365 days a year.