Another blow for Dunedin Hospital rebuild with learning centre parked
From reporter Hamish McNeilly:
It was meant to be part of a world-leading health and education precinct, but now it has been parked due to escalating costs.
The Interprofessional Learning Centre was pitched as an educational facility for University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic students at the new Dunedin Hospital.
But those behind the project - Te Whatu Ora, the University of Otago and Te Pūkenga – released a statement on Friday afternoon confirming: "that the Interprofessional Learning Centre will not go ahead at this time".
Instead, the focus has moved from a specific building for interprofessional learning, to moving to growing interdisciplinary training for future healthcare professionals.
Part of that decision involved the escalating costs of the project, increasing from an estimate of $50 million in 2020 to more than $130m based on current projections.
“Due to the escalating costs, our organisations have had to consider the feasibility of a new, separate building to house training,” Te Whatu Ora chief executive Fepulea'i Margie Apa said.
"I want to reassure the community that this decision will not impact or compromise the training for students and our staff.
"Our trainee doctors, nurses and other health practitioners will still continue to have the advantage of clinical placements on-site at the New Dunedin Hospital."
Te Whatu Ora would continue to explore how to further teaching and learning opportunities in Dunedin.
Meanwhile, the University of Otago’s acting vice-chancellor, Professor Helen Nicholson, said the university was a leader in interprofessional health education and was disappointed the project would not go ahead at this time.
Long-term, the university supported an interprofessional learning facility.
Work would continue between the three parties to develop interprofessional education as part of the workforce strategy, including the potential to ‘’reactivate’’ the proposal in the future.
The $17m earmarked for the project remains in the budget of the $1.4 billion hospital, the largest infrastructure build of it type in New Zealand.
The project had faced ballooning costs, which led to $100m in cuts while preserving as much design and clinical capacity as possible within a "reduced footprint".
However, a report from Te Whatu Ora Southern warned those cuts posed "reputational, operational and clinical risk".
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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62.6% Summer
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35.9% Winter
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1.5% Other - I'll share below
What word sums up 2024, neighbours?
If 2020 was the year of lockdowns, banana bread, and WFH (work from home)....
In one word, how would you define 2024?
We're excited to see what you come up with!
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
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