Long-established Nelson medical practice opens purpose-built centre in Richmond

A long standing, locally owned General Practice is expanding with a second site, opening in Richmond later this year, to be called Waimea Medical.

Stoke Medical has responded to the urgent demand for more general practice services in Richmond, by opening a secondary site on Salisbury Road.

Waimea Medical is expected to open by the end of this year and patients can enrol now to be seen at either site.

Right opposite Waimea Intermediate School, at the junction of Salisbury Road and D’Arcy Street, the striking venue is modern with an industry-leading air ventilation system.

Taking over the entire ground floor it has several car parking spaces with charging for electric vehicles, as well as plenty of free on-street parking.

It will have a fully operational theatre for minor surgery including skin cancer removal, gynaecological procedures, with scope for other surgical procedures to be added in the future.

With the new centre being across the road from Waimea Intermediate, and several other schools in the vicinity, it is expected to be very popular with families and young people.

Existing patients at Stoke Medical will be able to choose where they would like to have their appointments, and new patients would be welcome to enrol and see their doctor at either site.

The new site will offer a full range of general practice services including skin cancer diagnosis and treatment, vaccinations, menopausal support, wound care, and lifestyle advice.

The flexibility and emphasis on patient choice is a real advantage at a time when many General Practices have closed their books to taking on new patients.

The new centre has been endorsed by the Nelson Bays Primary Health Organisation.

Its CEO, Sara Shaughnessy, says the new Waimea Medical will provide a much-needed resource for the region.

“We all know how difficult it is to get in to see a GP at the moment, and particularly in Richmond where we are seeing a lot of new houses springing up, we are often hearing of the challenge people are facing.

“Continuity of care is important to the PHO, so having an established and reputable practice such as Stoke Medical taking up the baton is an exciting and necessary step for patient safety and health in our region,” she says.

The existing team at Stoke Medical, along with some new staff, will work across both sites, and continue to pride themselves on their caring and committed approach to patients.

Stoke Medical has a long-standing reputation in the region, having operated on its existing site on Main Road Stoke for over 60 years; some of its staff have worked there for more than two decades.

One of the practice directors, Dr. Kirsty Stewart, says opening a new site in Richmond has been something the team has been working towards for some time.

“We have seen the need, and we have been working very hard behind the scenes for the last few years to try and make this a reality.

“We are at capacity at our current Stoke site, so to be able to continue to enrol patients we knew we needed to expand and Richmond is the place with the greatest need.

“A lot of our current patients travel to our Stoke site from Richmond and beyond, so this offers those patients an option of being seen closer to home,” she says.

The building, designed by Redbox Architects, was a recent winner at the 2024 Nelson/Marlborough Architecture Awards, with Waimea Medical’s internal purpose-built fit-out designed by Signature Homes.

Nelson Orthodontics owns the new building and one of its managing partners, Andrew Marriott, says having such a well-established general practice expanding into their site is exactly what they’d hoped for.

“We are thrilled to have Stoke & Waimea Medical as health partners with their new clinic.

“We see it as a great fit. We designed the building as a community asset and couldn’t think of better partners to be working with.

“A big congratulations to the team at Stoke & Waimea Medical,” he says.

Patients can enrol now at Stoke Medical and be seen at either site once Waimea Medical opens its doors later this year.

This can be done by phoning 03 547 7488, or calling into Stoke Medical on 470 Main Road Stoke to pick up an enrolment form.