To be attributed to Dame Helen Stokes-Lampard, Health New Zealand National Chief Medical Office:
23 July 2025

Health New Zealand has today released the full findings of the Clinical Quality and Systems Review into concerns raised at Nelson Hospital. The report can be found below.

Nelson Marlborough Clinical Quality and Systems Review

The report presents a thorough evaluation of issues raised by staff and the community, and assesses the effectiveness and appropriateness of current initiatives aimed at improving access to care.

The review found that Nelson Marlborough is delivering strong outcomes across several key clinical quality and safety indicators, including low in-hospital mortality*, and staff were recognised for their dedication and commitment to providing safe, quality care to patients and the community.

The review also identified several areas that require addressing, including strengthening the current operational and clinical leadership structures, and the alignment of regional clinical governance group with national guidelines.

The review also confirms several longstanding challenges. These include persistent delays in the recruitment of both senior and junior medical staff, compounded by ageing infrastructure and increasing demand in services such as general medicine, cardiology, vascular surgery, and obstetrics and gynaecology.

These factors, with a background of, a growing and ageing population in need of more care than ever before, have contributed to longer wait times and delays in accessing specialist appointments.

Health New Zealand acknowledges these issues and is committed to working closely with local teams to address the root causes and implement sustainable solutions that improve patient access and service delivery.

The Executive Leadership Team of Health New Zealand has accepted all of the report’s findings. A review ‘recommendations implementation and action plan’ will be established, chaired by Health New Zealand Te Waipounamu Deputy Chief Executive, Martin Keogh, which will focus on four key areas:

  1. Clinical quality and safety
    • Reviewing of clinical governance to ensure it aligns with national guidelines, improves communication and visibility for clinicians and services, and is effectively used to escalate issues when needed.
    • Examining high-risk specialties, including vascular and obstetrics/gynaecology.
  2. Access to care
    • Improving access to first specialist appointments.
    • Reducing wait times for surgery and Emergency Department care.
  3. Workforce
    • Developing a plan and then implement a sustainable medical workforce at Nelson Hospital.
    • Addressing long-term vacancies in both senior and junior medical roles.
    • Managing demand and capacity challenges across key services.
  4. Facilities and infrastructure
    • Addressing infrastructure constraints across inpatient beds, outpatient clinics, and ED.
    • Progressing the hospital redevelopment project.

In addition to the action plan, we have made recent progress on a number of initiatives aimed at improving patient and staff experience:

  • A new ophthalmology outpatient facility has just opened.
  • A new dialysis building, opened in 2023, and continues to receive positive feedback.
  • Wahi Oranga, the acute mental health facility, is nearing completion of a full refurbishment.
  • Emergency Department refurbishment and expansion is on track for completion in early 2026.
  • A new paediatric outpatient facility, opened in 2024, is now co-located with Child and Youth Mental Health services.

Planning is underway for further developments including:

  • A temporary inpatient ward is expected to be delivered within the next 12 months.
  • A new purpose-built 128-bed inpatient unit is expected to be built by 2029.
  • Installation of a linear accelerator (linac) machine to enable local radiation therapy is anticipated during 28/29 (a Preliminary Business Case is underway).

We are committed to keeping staff and unions informed as we implement the report’s recommendations. While the report focuses on Nelson Hospital, the lessons learned will inform wider improvements across New Zealand’s healthcare system.

We remain committed to delivering the highest standard of care to the Nelson community. Our progress will be transparent and closely measured against the recommendations set out in this report.

* Nelson Marlborough’s in-hospital mortality is low (83) compared to all New Zealand hospitals (121) for the period April 2024 – March 2025.