CHAPTER
5
MOVING INTO THE FUTURE
A pēhea hoki meake nei ? And what of the future ?
The redevelopment of the Whakatāne Hospital is scheduled to commence in October 2011 . Prior to that date , a considerable amount of preparation of the redevelopment site , involving either the demolition or removal of existing buildings , will be undertaken .
The revised model of care for Whakatāne Hospital , which is reflected in the building design , will provide a workable and sustainable staffing plan for the hospital in providing the sharing of technical skills or competencies across all services . The new Acute Care Team will be made up of competent generalists supported by specialists ( on or off-site ). The sharing of knowledge and skills will lead to flexibility of staff working more efficiently across the ‘ Hot Floor ’ in response to the dynamic needs of the patients . Some the emerging roles include :
• Clinical nurse specialists
• Nurse Practitioners
• Hospitalists
• Rural Health Medicine Specialists ( training is already underway )
• Discharge or Transfer Coordinator .
The new ‘ Hot Floor ’ design provides a single point where patients have coordinated 24 hour emergency access to clinical care and the ongoing provision of a planning and assessment unit that provides for the management of inpatients for up to the first 36 hours . The ‘ Hot Floor ’ is the physical co-location of emergency , urgent and critical care services within a defined geographical area of the hospital . Those services include the Emergency Department , and the Admissions Planning , Intensive Care , High Dependency , and Coronary Care Units . The in-patient wards are to remain as at present .
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