Zones Set Up to Keep Patients Safe in our Hospitals
Northland DHB wants the community to be confident that if they require medical attention, they are safe to present at any of the hospitals in Northland. Separate zones have been created to accommodate those presenting with COVID-19 symptoms and those needing other urgent medical care.
On approach to DHB Hospitals patients are screened at the entrance gate to make sure they end up in the safest place for them to be seen.
If a patient presents with symptoms of COVID-19, they will be directed to the newly formed Red Zone for assessment, while all other patients will go to the Green Zone.
Part of the outpatient facility at Whangarei Hospital has been repurposed to create an extra 16-bed Medical Assessment Unit for adults and children who might have COVID-19. There are several single rooms with negative pressure for safe care in the Red Zone in Whangarei and the rural hospitals so that suspected cases of COVID-19 are not put next to other people who might have the virus. A dedicated lift to connect the Red Zone areas of the hospital has also been assigned.
Dargaville Hospital has been split into two zones. The General Ward remains in the Green Zone, and the Red Zone is in another part of the hospital. Please note access to the hospital for after-hours care has changed, so if you are coming for after-hours care, please follow the directions.
Bay of Islands Hospital has turned the new facility into the Red Zone with designated isolation rooms within the new emergency department. If numbers of presentations increase, we will be able to move into the old part of the hospital to continue providing emergency care to patients who present without COVID-19 symptoms.
Kaitaia Hospital has also been split into two areas. A Red Zone for possible or probable COVID-19 cases and a Green Zone area needed to continue with business as usual. The second floor of the hospital, which is the current Day Surgery and Theatre Department, has been designated as the inpatient Red Zone.
Hauora Hokianga Rawene Hospital asks people to phone (09 405 7709) if they are worried or think they need care before coming to the hospital. Staff can assess the kind of care that is needed and make arrangements to see them appropriately. The Community Based Testing Centre is accessed via Honey Street and is open Monday to Friday from 10 am until 2 pm.
Urgent outpatient care across the region is now provided via telephone and video links freeing up the facility space for other uses and keeping our community safe in their bubbles.
In line with the Government’s directive, Northland DHB has adopted a no visitor policy with only a few exceptions. Only one well person is permitted to visit who is supporting a terminally ill patient through the end of life care, a child or pregnant women.
In some cases, exceptions to this policy will be made on essential and compassionate grounds. A lead clinician will make the decision, and the visitor will undergo screening before they enter to ensure they are well, have clean hands, and are using appropriate personal protective equipment.
The DHB and Māori Health Providers have also now moved to a seven-day Community Based Testing schedule with all locations offering weekend testing. For more information about the Community Based Testing Centres, go to our website.
-ENDS-
Whangarei Hospital Medical Assessment Unit staff
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