Reminder of changes to entrances at Lakes District Hospital

The Southern District Health Board would like to remind all patients and visitors at Lakes District Hospital of the changes to hospital access.  

• Access to the Emergency Department (ED) will be from the ambulance entrance (ED entrance off Lucas Place), where there is limited parking.  

• Walk ins to the ED should use the ambulance entrance (ED entrance off Lucas Place) where triage nurses will allocate priority according to triage principles 

• Access to the maternity ward will be through the Main Hospital Entrance off Douglas Street until 6 pm. For access during 6 pm - 8 am, entry will be around the side of the maternity unit at the front of the hospital. Please call your LMC or the maternity unit in advance for pre-screening. 

• Patients visiting the hospital for other appointments including Outpatients clinics, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and X-Ray/ CT or visitors should continue to use the Main Hospital Entrance off Douglas Street. 

These changes will continue to help keep our community safe and limit contact with other patients as much as possible.  

“We are expecting high volumes of patients presenting to our Emergency Department so we would like to remind the community to keep our Emergency Department for emergencies only. Contact Healthline or your GP in the first instance if you need health advice,” says Lakes District Hospital Service Manager, Emily Nelson. 

“When in doubt, we strongly encourage you to get tested and stay in isolation until you receive your test results.” 

All patients and visitors entering the hospital will be screened for COVID-19 which will ensure an added layer of protection for our community. SDHB understands that this may add to some extra time when entering the hospital but appreciates the patience and consideration from the public around these changes.  

Key information for patients and visitors can be found on the Southern Health website and is also listed below. 

Key information for patients and visitors: 

ED patients: 
All access to the ED will be from the ED entrance off Lucas Place 

• This entrance is the ambulance entrance across from the airport. Please drive to the ED entrance off Lucas Place, where there is limited parking 

• Some parking is available in this area for parents of young children and for people with disabilities 

• If there is no parking available, please drop your patient, then exit the area and park their car in the Douglas Street car park. You can then access the ED from the Douglas Street car park by following the marked path around the side of the building to the back of the hospital. 

• Please do not walk through the Main Hospital Entrance off Douglas Street to the hospital if you are accessing the ED. 

Maternity Ward 

• Access to the maternity ward will be through the Main Hospital Entrance off Douglas Street until 6 pm. For access during 6 pm - 8 am, entry will be around the side of the maternity unit at the front of the hospital. Please call your LMC or the maternity unit in advance for pre-screening. 

Non-ED patients: 

• All access through the Main Hospital Entrance off Douglas Street as is current practice. 
  If you are visiting the hospital for non-Emergency reasons such as outpatient clinics, radiology or physiotherapy, in other parts of the hospital, please present to the front of the hospital and undertake the screening as normal.  

Please remember: 

• All visitors and patients are required to wear surgical masks. This must be worn prior to engaging with security and entry to hospital and during your visit.  With the national move to Red all staff, patients, and visitors over the age of 8 years old, will need to wear a surgical face mask. 

• Visitors are also required to scan in using the COVID tracer App (paper sign in is also available), practice hand hygiene and stay home if they are sick. 

COVID pre-flight swabs 
These are not available at Lakes District Hospital. If you require this service, please see your GP. 

Access to Lake Wakatipu Care Centre 
There is no access to Lake Wakatipu Care Centre from the hospital. You need to access directly through the side door to the Care Centre. 

Media enquiries:  
SDHB Communications Team  
communications@southerndhb.govt.nz  

ENDS