Philippa Branthwaite

This week Whakatāne Hospital maternity staff have been told that obstetric and gynaecological service will cease on January 13, 2025. Staff have left and Tauranga Hospital will not provide locum services to replace the service.

We have on average 50 births a month at Whakatāne hospital. The demographics of our population in the East Coast, Ōpōtiki, and Whakatāne area are totally different to Tauranga.

Only one in five births are uncomplicated. The 10-or-so mothers who have uncomplicated births will continue to have their babies at Whakatāne Hospital. And the other approximately 40 births with complications will need to be transported to Tauranga.

This means that unless it is a planned birth such as planned caesarean, the mums will have to be transported by ambulance to Tauranga. We already have mums travelling from the East Cape and Ōpōtiki and now they will need to travel another 1.5 hours to get care they need and at times this will be emergency care.

It also means that during pregnancy any mum who needs face to face obstetric care will also need to travel to Tauranga to see a doctor.

As well as a devastating impact on mothers, their babies and their whānau, other women who need gynaecological service at other times in their lives will also have to travel to Tauranga.

This is an attack on women’s health – will women or babies die? It is an example of decisions being made in Tauranga effecting health in the Eastern Bay and is a further downgrading of health services provided by Whakatāne Hospital.

Staff have been told that it is only temporary but will last for at least two years. Once it has been in place for two years it becomes the norm, and it will be extremely unlikely that the service will be reinstated.

Is this another way in which the Government and Lester Levy save money at the expense of providing an appropriate service for our mums and babies?