VISITING HOSPITAL

All hospital visitors are recommended to wear a medical face mask. Expand this message for information about visiting hospital.

Last updated:
13 March 2023

Some visitor restrictions for all Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury hospitals and health facilities remain in place, but we have relaxed others.

There is still a heightened risk to vulnerable people in hospital and so we recommend all people wear a mask when visiting any of our facilities and follow other advice designed to keep patients, staff and  visitors safe.

To keep everybody safe:

  • Visitors or support people must not visit our facilities if they are unwell. Do not visit if you have recently tested positive for COVID-19 and haven’t completed your isolation period.
  • Patients may have more than one visitor, except in some situations such as multi-bed rooms where it can cause overcrowding.
  • Surgical/medical masks are recommended to be worn at all sites. Masks will be provided if you don’t have one.
  • For Specialist Mental Health Services everyone is strongly encouraged to wear a face mask in all inpatient areas and areas where consumers are receiving care (i.e. community appointments, home-visits, transporting people). Discretion may be applied in cases where masks impair your ability to communicate effectively.
  • Visitors must not eat or drink in multibed rooms because of the increased risk when multiple people remove their face mask in the same space.
  • Hand sanitiser is available and must be used.

Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding as our staff work hard to protect and care for some of the most vulnerable in our community.

Visiting patients with COVID-19

  • People can visit patients who have COVID-19 but they must wear an N95 mask – this will be provided if you don’t have one.
  • Other methods of communication will be facilitated e.g. phone, Facetime, Zoom, WhatsApp etc where visits aren’t possible.

All of our Hospitals

Visiting hours for our hospitals have returned to pre COVID-19 hours with the exception of Christchurch Women’s Hospital.

All visitors are recommended to wear a medical face mask.

Parents/caregivers are able to be with their child in hospital and visitors are now allowed, except for the Children’s Haematology and Oncology Day stay where just one parent/caregiver is able to attend their appointment with their child. Exceptions by special arrangement only.

Patients and visitors should also read the additional more detailed visiting guidelines for each specific hospital.

More COVID-19 information

Canterbury DHB Occupational Health Service Review (Summary)

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  4. Canterbury DHB Occupational Health Service Review (Summary)

​​​In 2017 a review of our Occupational Health Service was undertaken to look at how we could better support the current and future needs of our people as part of our commitment – through the organisation's People Strategy. Central to the Strategy is the concept that Care Starts Here, with our people.

The Review involved a literature scan of related studies, an online survey of our workforce [1419 respondents], and a series of in-depth interviews.

Survey findings

Key findings from the survey included:

  • Musculoskeletal and mental health conditions are prominent among our people who have a long-term condition.

  • The support provided to those with an injury compared with those with ill health [physical and mental] is seen as inequitable

  • Our people identify a need to strengthen our support for their psychological health

  • Sickness absence is increasing across our organisation

  • Confidential support services are valued by our people

Key areas we need to develop

Our vision is for an Occupational Health Service which provides high quality support for the Canterbury DHB workforce to be and stay well. Achieving this vision will require:

  • Increased focus on prevention and health promotion

  • A more equitable approach to provision of support to our people experiencing mental ill health, physical ill health, and injury, including the possible adoption of a case management to illness as well as injury

  • Increased emphasis on supporting our people with mental ill health at work

  • Increased use of data to inform service delivery activity and to support organisational productivity.

  • A more integrated approach, partnering more closely with Community Public Health, primary care, and third party service providers.

  • Appropriate resourcing

Next steps

  • In February 2018 Canterbury DHB's Executive Management Team [EMT] received the Report.  EMT endorsed the Report's recommendations and approved resourcing to establish a programme of work to support the Occupational Health Service to evolve towards the vision for the future service and to better enable it to support our people to be and stay well.

  • The programme of work will set out which actions will be taken and set timeframes for their implementation, and is being overseen by an Advisory Group who had their first meeting on 14 March, 2018.

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Page last updated: 25 October 2018

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