More hip and knee operations for Hawke’s Bay people

27 Jul 2020, 11:49

Hawke’s Bay people will now have access to 200 hip and knee joint replacement elective operations thanks to a new partnership agreement with Royston Hospital and Hawke’s Bay DHB.

Chief Operating Officer Chris Ash said he was very pleased to announce the new agreement with Royston Hospital, a division of Acurity Health Group Limited, and a trusted partner of Hawke’s Bay DHB.

“The two organisations have been working hard over the last couple of months to develop a plan where a contracted and guaranteed strategy is in place to deliver more joint operations this year.

This agreement worth more than $3million will provide a 25 percent increase in access to Hawke’s Bay people who need hip and knee joint operations. 

“The demand for this type of surgery grows each year and we need a plan in place to increase our ability to make that happen,” he said.

This additional capacity for surgery will see a total of 400 hip and knee joint operations done electively in Hawke’s Bay before the end of June 2021.  In previous years some joint surgery was outsourced but without a formalised plan in place for those surgeries to be done.

“This agreement now gives people of Hawke’s Bay certainty in the number of elective hip and knee operations that can be done,” Mr Ash said.

Hawke’s Bay DHB’s Board Chair Shayne Walker said the Board welcomed this news, as it supported the Board’s objective for better access to elective surgery for Hawke’s Bay people.

General Manager Royston Hospital Denise Primrose said “our ongoing collaboration shows how we can successfully partner to deliver orthopaedic surgical capacity in our region. It also gives certainty in a time of change, and further strengthens our close working relationship with Hawke’s Bay DHB”.