Services for older people — Waikato

To contact a Waikato Hospital department or service:

• phone: 07 839 8899

The older persons and rehabilitation service is based out of the Older Persons and Rehabilitation Building.

This facility was purpose-built for health services related to older people and for rehabilitation services. The building includes 4 wards and an outpatient clinic, as well as a ward and clinic area for mental health services.

Older Persons and Rehabilitation Building
Waikato Hospital
210 Pembroke Street
Hamilton 3204

We provide the following hospital-based services:

• general assessment, treatment and rehabilitation for people 65 and older, or those close in age, interests and characteristics
• orthopaedic rehabilitation for people with significant fractures
• intensive rehabilitation for people 16 and older who meet set criteria
• the combined stroke service
• urgent (acute) care for patients with stroke, and stroke patients requiring assessment, treatment and rehabilitation
• geriatrician specialist assessment and treatment for patients referred by a hospital doctor or general practitioner
• specialist-led clinics that take a multidisciplinary approach to address issues and conditions of older patients referred by GPs or hospital services.

Specialist community inpatient and outpatient services for older people living with significant mental illness or cognitive decline.

Mental health services for older people — Waikato (internal link)

Health of Older People provides needs assessment and service coordination for people with age-related disability lasting longer than 6 months who meet eligibility for publicly funded services.

Contact and referral information is on our disability support page.

Disability support — Waikato (internal link)

The combined stroke service service works in collaboration with Waikato Hospital's acute medical unit to provide a patient care pathway for people experiencing a stroke or a transient ischemic attack.

The service involves both urgent (acute) and rehabilitation components and involves intensive interdisciplinary teamwork to enable best outcomes for stroke patients.

The Supported Transfer and Accelerated Rehabilitation Team (START) is part of the Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora Waikato's Older Persons, Rehabilitation and Allied Health service.

It offers intensive in-home rehabilitation to those discharged from hospital, focusing on achieving personal, meaningful goals identified by you and your whānau.

The service:

• supports you to make a safe and quicker transition from hospital to home
• provides the intensive support and rehabilitation you might need, in your home rather than through a longer stay in hospital
• provides intensive rehabilitation for up to 6 weeks in your homes following a stay in hospital or emergency department visit.

You must be over 65 and have rehabilitation potential to use this service.

A registered nurse, physiotherapist and occupational therapist will all visit you at home and help to set some goals. A health care assistant may come and visit you up to 3 times a day to support you to achieve these goals. 

The service has been proven to be effective.

• It delivers care in your own environment and on your terms.
• It helps you to achieve real life goals of your choice.
• It reduces your length of stay in hospital.
• It supports you to stay at home for longer and as a result halves your chances of being readmitted to hospital.

The services is based out of Hamilton, Cambridge and Thames and covers the whole Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora Waikato area.

We have two continuing care facilities for long- and short-term care and recovery:

Matariki Continuing Care
389 Kihikihi Road
Te Awamutu 3800
389 Kihihihi Road, Te Awamutu — Google Maps (external link)
Phone: 07 871 7479

Rhoda Read Continuing Care
222 Studholme Street
Morrinsville
222 Studholme Street, Morrinsville — Google Maps (external link)
Phone: 07 889 7039

Services we provide at these facilities:

• long-term residents
• carer relief and support
• respite care
• intermittent care
• palliative care
• primary care bed and funding
• Waikato patients requiring convalescent care
• Meals on Wheels
• day care.

Meals on Wheels is a support service that prepares and delivers a subsidised hot midday meal. The service is for eligible people who cannot prepare their own meals because of age, a disability or an illness.

Meals on Wheels in Waikato (internal link)

A referral for this service must come from a healthcare provider.