Key Takeaways
- The healthcare system in New Zealand’s Central Region experienced a significant technology outage, affecting multiple hospitals and healthcare services.
- The outage was caused by issues with the digital infrastructure, which provides access to clinical and administrative systems.
- The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists claims that the outage is a result of staffing cuts and budget limitations, which have led to a lack of reliable systems and significant delays.
- The organization is calling for Health New Zealand’s senior leadership and board to take accountability for the ongoing issues and their impact on patient care.
- The technology issues are not only affecting patient care but also making it harder for healthcare workers to do their jobs and potentially driving them away from the profession.
Introduction to the Issue
The healthcare system in New Zealand’s Central Region recently experienced a significant technology outage, which affected multiple hospitals and healthcare services. The outage was caused by issues with the digital infrastructure, which provides access to clinical and administrative systems. According to a healthcare worker, who wished to remain anonymous, the inability to access patients’ vital health information was a significant clinical risk. The worker claimed that Te Whatu Ora, the organization responsible for managing the healthcare system, did not know which provider was managing the IT systems over the summer break, which contributed to the outage.
Extent of the Outage
The extent of the outage is not entirely clear, but it is known that the Central Region, Wellington Hospital, Wairarapa Hospital, and Hutt Hospital were all affected. An all-staff email sent by Health New Zealand confirmed that the outage had impacted staff throughout the central region and warned of potential disruptions to patient care pathways and risks to emergency departments. The email also noted that there was a gap in knowledge around who was on-call, which was an outstanding issue that needed to be addressed. The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director, Sarah Dalton, stated that the Single Clinical Portal, a platform used by Wellington, Hutt, and Wairarapa Hospitals, had been malfunctioning for months, and Health New Zealand had admitted to having major problems with it late last year.
Causes of the Outage
The causes of the outage are still unclear, but the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists claims that staffing cuts and budget limitations are to blame. The organization’s executive director, Sarah Dalton, stated that the ongoing inability of Health New Zealand to get its data and digital infrastructure in place is a result of resource constraints, budget limitations, and staffing cuts. She also noted that senior data and digital staff had confirmed that many more staff took voluntary redundancy than expected, leaving the department understaffed. This has resulted in significant delays and difficulties for clinicians, who are having to use workarounds on a daily basis. For example, trying to search a patient’s medication history manually can be challenging, especially if the patient is already in treatment or very unwell and may not have that information readily available.
Impact on Patient Care
The outage has had a significant impact on patient care, with clinicians facing significant delays and difficulties in accessing vital health information. The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists is calling for Health New Zealand’s senior leadership and board to take accountability for the ongoing issues and their impact on patient care. Dalton stated that the organization needs to understand why it is contracting out IT services, which is more expensive, when it has just let many staff go. She also emphasized that the healthcare system should prioritize timely diagnosis and treatment, but the current approach is making healthcare harder to access and more difficult for healthcare workers to work in.
Response from Health New Zealand
Health New Zealand’s group director of operations for Capital, Coast, and Hutt Valley, Jamie Duncan, confirmed that there had been an issue with the digital infrastructure, but stated that functional access to critical systems had been established around 9 am, and services continued to operate safely throughout. He also stated that all systems were accessible by 4 pm, and teams were working to ensure all users were fully restored. However, the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists remains concerned about the ongoing technology issues, including the axing or deferral of over 100 IT projects, delays to rollouts, and outages, which are not only affecting patient care but also making it harder for healthcare workers to do their jobs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the technology outage in New Zealand’s Central Region highlights the significant challenges facing the healthcare system. The outage was caused by issues with the digital infrastructure, which provides access to clinical and administrative systems. The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists claims that staffing cuts and budget limitations are to blame, and is calling for Health New Zealand’s senior leadership and board to take accountability for the ongoing issues and their impact on patient care. The organization needs to prioritize timely diagnosis and treatment, and ensure that healthcare workers have the resources and support they need to provide high-quality care. Ultimately, the healthcare system should be designed to prioritize patient care, and the current approach is falling short of this goal.
