Callout for doctors to staff temporary Napier ED as flood cuts access to Hastings Hospital

Power is out for all of Hawke’s Bay, as far as I know, which doesn’t make managing a practice very easy when you can’t get a computer to go or electronic doors and things like that

An emergency call has gone out for doctors and nurses to help staff at a temporary emergency department at the GP-owned Napier Health Centre as flooding makes access to the main ED in Hastings unsafe.

Hawke’s Bay is one of seven regions that have declared a local state of emergency in response to Cyclone Gabrielle, leading to a national state of emergency being declared this morning.

The other regions affected most severely by what Civil Defence is describing an “unprecendented and dangerous weather event” are Northland, Auckland, Tairāwhiti, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and most recently Tararua.

Te Whatu Ora Te Mata a Māui Hawke’s Bay shortly after 10am this morning cited travel challenges for patients when it announced the setting up of a temporary ED at City Medical Urgent Care clinic at the Napier Health Centre as an alternative to the region’s Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital and ED in Hastings.

The agency called for doctors and nurses with appropriate clinical skills, and who can travel safely, to make their way to City Medical Urgent Care to help assist with the stand-up clinic.

Health professionals who are willing to assist can call 06 834 1815 or present in person to the centre at 76 Wellesley St, Te Whatu Ora says.

"We appreciate any and all assistance in the Hawke's Bay from qualified doctors and nurses."

Napier Health Centre is an urgent care centre owned and operated by 40 local doctors in the Napier/Taradale area. It operates 8am to 9pm, after which Te Whatu Ora steps in and runs a nurse-led urgent care service overnight.

Te Whatu Ora Hawke’s Bay says it's continuing with acute surgery and urgent radiology but has cancelled a number of other services, including elective surgery and outpatient appointments.

Fears the flood protection systems on the Tutaekuri River may fail prompted Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence to order evacuation of several Napier suburbs, including Taradale and Meeanee, that are close to the river.

Flooding has also made at least five bridges in Hastings and Napier impassable, including the Brookfields Bridge (pictured), which has collapsed.

READ MORE:

• Birthing kits, emergency generators at the ready as Coromandel prepares for cyclone
• January: Water, water everywhere: How primary care coped and helped others deal with floods
• $5 million support package for flood affected Auckland businesses

Taradale Medical Centre GP Mark Peterson says his surgery remains closed today after power cuts hit the region and the flooding warnings following the “hugely unusual” weather event.

“Power is out for all of Hawke’s Bay, as far as I know, which doesn’t make managing a practice very easy when you can’t get a computer to go or electronic doors and things like that.”

Dr Peterson says much of Taradale has been evacuated, including his daughter’s home, but his own Taradale home was “slightly up the hill so my feet are dry”. He says he had a view of his practice building which appeared okay at present. “But I can see lots of surface water around at the bottom of the hill.”

While it had rained heavily in Napier, he believes it was the rain in the hills that caused the Tutaekuri River to reach the top of its stopbanks.

Dr Peterson expects many other general practices were closed “as the whole town doesn’t have power” and practices like his cannot work remotely without power to connect to servers and modems back at the clinics.

Despite warnings about the cyclone, he wasn’t expecting the extent of the impact or that power would be out for so long; he has heard reports of substations under water. “We have no idea what time power will come back.”