West Coast DHB appeals to regional council for help with patient transport
From local democracy reporter Lois Williams:
The West Coast District Health Board is appealing to the West Coast Regional Council to support a public transport service between Greymouth and Westport.
Since 2012, the Buller branch of the Red Cross has run a community health shuttle for Westoport people with medical appointments in Greymouth.
But Red Cross throughout the country is moving out of providing patient transport and has given notice that the service will end next year.
DHB chairman Rick Barker told Friday's board meeting that the regional council was the organisation responsible for public transport.
"Currently there is none between Westport and Greymouth. Thus is an opportunity to approach the regional council about [starting] a reliable service that would work for the public and patients and the DHB."
Regional council chairman Allan Birchfield said the council would be open to the idea.
"It would need to be subsidised, and it would have to work in with one of the freight services to be viable. You could have a bus or van with freight in the back and passengers in the front."
Birchfield said he already floated the idea with one of the Coast freight operators.
"That's as far as it's got - it's early days but it is something the council will be looking at."
The West Coast DHB has an agreement with Red Cross to provide a small financial contribution toward the running costs of the vehicle it uses for the Westport to Greymouth shuttle.
The Ministry of Health subsidies patient travel through its National Travel Assistance scheme, but generally only patients referred for specialist appointments are eligible.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we are having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Calling All Puzzle Masters! Can You Solve This?
When John was six years old he hammered a nail into his favorite tree to mark his height.
Ten years later at age sixteen, John returned to see how much higher the nail was.
If the tree grew by five centimetres each year, how much higher would the nail be?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
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