Nurses at Health NZ public hospitals and health services plan to strike from 7am to 11pm on both Tuesday 2 September and Thursday 4 September. Emergency departments will be open for emergencies only.
GPs, after-hours and urgent care clinics, and other community health providers are not affected by the strikes and will continue to operate as normal.
Industrial action — Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Oraexternal link
Dunedin and Southland hospitals have registered early learning centres connected to them that are staffed by qualified teachers known as hospital play specialists.
If your tamaiti is admitted to a children's ward, speak to one of the nurses who can put you in touch with a Hospital play specialist.
Dunedin Hospital
201 Great King Street
Dunedin
Otago 9016
Southland Hospital
Kew Road
Kew
Invercargill 9812
Operating hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday.
Hospital play specialists are teachers with qualifications endorsed in early childhood or primary education. They help tamariki in children's wards adjust to hospital settings by reducing stress and anxiety around their treatments and stays through play.
Our goals are to:
Play is how tamariki make sense of the world around them. In hospital it helps them to:
As a parent or caregiver you can:
Our hospital play specialist teams also provide general support to all tamariki aged 0 to 15 who are inpatients and outpatients at these hospitals, as well as their whānau.
You can find out more about Hospital play specialists on the Hospital play specialist association website.
Hospital play specialists are thankful for the regular donations to the playrooms from members of their communities.
Contact a play specialist at our hospitals first if you are considering donating any items to the playrooms.
