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

Realistic, low-cost medical simulator developed by Christchurch team

Thursday 17 May 2018Media release2 minutes to read

THIS IS AN ARCHIVED PAGE. The advice and information contained in this page may not be current and it should only be used for historical reference purposes.
Anaesthetic Specialist Dr Daniel Hartwell acts as a patient for a simulation.

Anaesthetic Specialist Dr Daniel Hartwell acts as a patient for a simulation.

Simulations in healthcare are great for training, but can be expensive.

A team headed by Christchurch Hospital anaesthetic specialist Dr Daniel Hartwell has designed a low-cost, highly-realistic simulator that plugs in to everyday medical equipment.

Previous medical simulation systems tended to be very expensive and/or unable to be transported easily.

“Nurses and technicians are all part of the same team, and so everyone needs access to the same system,” Daniel says.

Most systems use mock monitors, designed to look like the real thing.

“The issue with that the mock monitor and how it behaves is not the same as the ones actually used, so their value for training is limited,” Daniel says.

Biomedical Engineer Michael Sheedy from the Canterbury District Health Board (Canterbury DHB) Medical Physics and Bioengineering Department helped Daniel develop a system that would use the same equipment clinical staff used every day.

“You wouldn't train a pilot in an Airbus A380 and then expect them to fly a 747,” Michael says.

At that stage, Daniel had been using calibration devices to run simulations of his own design. These devices are used to check equipment, and can be used to make certain displays appear on medical monitors.

“Dan was like a DJ, controlling all of these pieces of kit to control the monitors,” Michael says.

Throughout 2016 and 2017, the pair developed software to allow someone to control the calibration device wirelessly from a tablet computer. They envision creating a series of modules to expand the usefulness of the simulator.

The first module, called RESPIRECO2, is a device that generates carbon dioxide to imitate different human breathing patterns, which show up on real monitors.

Daniel has conducted simulations for anaesthetics teams using partial and full mannequins, and actors. He has tested the simulator in surgical theatres, the intensive care unit, ambulances, and a medical transport helicopter.

The simulator is also used for training in Christchurch Hospital's Emergency Department, and futher testing is being carried out at different hospitals around New Zealand and in Australia.

The Hartwell Simulator has been developed in partnership with Canterbury DHB as part of a focus on using technology to improve healthcare for patients and staff.

ENDS

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Page last updated: 19 October 2022

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