January 2024 Update

Kapiti response to repeal of the Smokefree Legislation

The recent decision by the Coalition Government to repeal the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Act 2022 raised a number of issues for KHAG and in December we recommended to Kāpiti Coast District Council (KCDC) that it conveys to Government its concern with this action.

 

KHAG also recommended that should the Government continue and repeal the Act, KCDC should ask that it be replaced with a new evidence-based Bill that met the intentions of the current Act and it be developed using standard parliamentary process including select committee hearings and public submissions.

 

KHAG acknowledged there may be some practical challenges in implementing the legislation as the incoming Government has argued. however we believe the potential health benefits well outweigh these concerns. 

 

KCDC accepted these recommendations and Mayor Janet Holborow has written to the Minister of Health Shane Reti and Associate Minister of Health Casey Costello firmly supporting the aims of the Amendment Act and expressing KCDC’s wish to see replacement legislation that will still achieve the goals of that Act. 

 

We are proud of our Mayor and Council’s forward-thinking commitment to the health and wellbeing of Kāpiti residents and thank them for their strong stand on this matter.

Innovative Polyclinic Sought For Kāpiti

As readers of our Newsletter will be aware, more health services delivered locally is top of the list of Kāpiti Health Advisory Group’s ambitions for Kāpiti.

 

One of our Members, Ian Powell, has recently published an article on this topic in Newsroom and we provide a brief summary and link to the article here.

 

 

In his article, Ian talks about the disestablishment of district health boards in July 2022, where the Kāpiti Coast District Council found itself the only remaining statutory voice for improved health service access for its residents. Although not a provider of health services, KCDC has a statutory role to promote the health and wellbeing of its population under the community wellbeing requirements of the Local Government Act. Consequently, the district council has established a health advisory committee, the Kāpiti Health Advisory Group (KHAG).

 

KHAG is working with KCDC to develop a “compelling case” on why we need more and better health services on the Coast. This will involve a detailed needs assessment and analysis of what we have, what we need and how to fill the gap.

 

The objectives are to integrate primary and secondary care, expand healthcare access through this ‘one-stop shop’, and reduce pressure on Wellington Hospital.

 

The focus is on delivering a wider range of services including 24/7 urgent care (not to be confused with an emergency department), a much wider range of hospital specialist outpatient clinics, relevant diagnostic services such as radiography, tele-health, beds for post-operative recovery where appropriate, and increased GP capacity.

 

Kāpiti’s population is expected to grow by more than 35,000 (to over 85,000) over the next 20 years. The council must consider planning to future-proof the health needs of this growth.

 

The article is well worth reading and can be found by clicking on the button below.

 

Thanks to Ian and Newsroom for allowing us to reproduce excerpts from this article.

Read Ian Powell's Full Article in Newsroom

Home4All - Care For People Living With Dementia

A very welcome guest speaker at our December meeting was Marian Weststrate from Home4All in Raumati.  Home4All is the first green care farm model of care based on Dutch models of care for people with dementia, in New Zealand.

 

It offers a new approach to day activities and respite programmes for people living in the early stage of dementia who wish to remain active.

 

Marian and her husband Jan have many years of experience in health care, Marian has been a District Nurse on the Kāpiti Coast and her husband Jan has been a healthcare consultant and holds a PhD from Erasmus University in the Netherlands.  Home4All is a result of the many healthcare study tours to the Netherlands , hosted and organised by them. The “Green Care Farm” Model focuses on three themes :

  • Being outside

  • Being together

  • Being involved in the ordinary things of life.

 

The concept is providing a valuable addition to options for dementia care on Kāpiti Coast and we wish them all the best with their work.  People can contact Jan or Marian on 021 897 605 or via their website: www.Home4All.co.nz or Facebook page: Home4All

Pacific Radiology

Local residents will have noticed that the Pacific Radiology facility on Kāpiti Road has been closed for several months now with extensive construction work underway.  We understand the new facilities are due to open soon and will include additional MRI and CT scan equipment offering delivery of important diagnostic services here on the Coast.

 

KHAG welcomes this addition to services provided locally which will save many people the 65 km or more journey they previously had to make to Wellington. 

If you have any feedback about the contents of this newsletter, or want to know more about a specific health topic in Kapiti, please email us at kapitihealthadvisorygroup@gmail.com

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