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

Ashburton and rural health services

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Ashburton and rural health services covers a wide range of services provided in rural areas including rural hospital specialist medicine and community services. Ashburton Hospital provides secondary level hospital care, led by a specialist rural medical workforce, working closely with Christchurch tertiary services. There are also a number of smaller rural hospitals in Akaroa, Darfield, Oxford, Ellesmere, Kaikoura and Waikari, all of which work closely with local primary care services.

Health services provided include: general medicine, day procedures, palliative care, maternity services, specialist outpatient services, and assessment, treatment and rehabilitation services, and long-term care for the elderly, including dementia care, diagnostic services, and meals on wheels.

Also offered in Ashburton are rural community services: day care, district nursing, home support and clinical nurse specialist outreach services, including respiratory, cardiac, diabetes, wound care, urology, continence and stoma therapy.

The division also operates Tuarangi Home, which provides hospital-level care for the elderly in Ashburton and in 2011 introduced rest home dementia care for the elderly.

Page last updated: 25 March 2019

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