Wānaka’s overnight medical care service is still in place - despite the contract for its delivery having expired at the end of February - and a local group says any replacement service needs to be extended and better funded.

The future of the overnight service will depend on the outcome of the Queenstown Lakes Clinical Services Plan, which is still with minister of health Simeon Brown, Health New Zealand (HNZ) told the Wānaka App.

However, advocacy group Health Action Wānaka (HAW) says the community “should not need to wait for wider clinical services planning before receiving equitable funding for after-hours care”.

“Cost remains a significant barrier to accessing after-hours care in the Upper Clutha,” a HAW spokesperson said.

The Wānaka Overnight Acute Care service (based at Aspiring Care, previously Aspiring Enliven) continues to operate alongside existing after-hours services provided by Aspiring Medical Centre and Wānaka Medical Centre.

The cost of the service depends on what time the patient presents: between 6-11pm the cost can run from $180 per hour (for those over 14 years old) to $500 or more an hour.

After 11pm it can cost between $240 per hour and $650 per hour.

The contract for the service expired on February 28, and HNZ Southern senior integration manager Emma McDonough said work “towards a permanent solution is continuing”.

“This solution will be aligned to the national urgent and after-hours care framework and informed by the outcome of the Queenstown Lakes Clinical Services Planning.” 

Health Action Wānaka said the cost of the current overnight service creates a “clear inequity” for the Upper Clutha community.

The national urgent and after-hours care framework was established to develop a robust and equitable urgent and after-hours care system for New Zealand.

HAW says this community “should not be paying more for urgent care simply because we live in Wānaka”.

“Our after-hours and overnight clinicians do an incredible job in very challenging circumstances,” the group told the Wānaka App.

“However, we continue to hear Wānaka residents do not have access to a free, local emergency department, yet they are expected to pay for services that are publicly funded in many other towns of similar size across New Zealand. 

“This creates a clear inequity for our community.”

“On that basis, we are calling for improvements to our local service, including an on-site nurse and GP triage during higher-demand times,” HAW said. 

“This would improve patient care and also address the clinical and physical safety risks of having a single clinician on call overnight.”

HAW would also like to see extended in-clinic, after-hours services during evenings and at Weekends (particularly during peak visitor periods), and increased funding for extended primary care to enable GP practices to provide more acute, after-hours services. 

“Together, extended hours and additional funding for these services would allow more patients to be treated locally and reduce pressure on the Hato Hone St John ambulance service and Dunstan Hospital.

“Ultimately, we are asking the government to provide adequate funding so that after-hours providers can offer a flat-rate co-payment, as already occurs in other communities across New Zealand.”

Waitaki MP Miles Anderson told the Wānaka App the interim overnight service ensures “the community has access to healthcare outside normal hours”.

“...any future updates to this will also be informed by the outcome of the Queenstown Lakes Clinical Services Planning (CSP),” he said.

“While this work is evolving, I will continue to advocate for additional service uplifts for Central Otago and the Upper Clutha, such as the recent announcements around blood tests and imaging, and I appreciate the Minister's ongoing engagement in relation to our region."

The Wānaka overnight care service was announced in June 2024 and opened in October the same year. The service is run in collaboration between HNZ and Central Otago Health Services Ltd, which operates Dustan Hospital.

PHOTOS: Supplied