Outreach clinic gets green light
Families in a rural Marlborough community will finally be able to visit the doctor without having to schedule a trip into Blenheim.
Renwick Medical Centre is launching a weekly outreach clinic to see patients at Wairau Valley, west of Blenheim, for people who would otherwise put off getting an appointment and risk their illness getting worse.
Dr Buzz Burrell, who announced the plan in January, had hoped the clinic would be launched in February.
But securing his preferred location for the clinic, Wairau Valley School, required extra work which pushed the opening date back eight months to Wednesday.
‘‘We needed to find a venue that worked for both us and the community.
‘‘The school was a very obvious choice,’’ Burrell said.
‘‘The board of trustees were brilliant, but they’ve got to follow due process. And then there was the Ministry of Education.
‘‘I’ve spent 20-odd years of my life working with the Ministry of Health, and the wheels of progress work at a glacial pace on a good day. It appears the Ministry of Education is similarly oiled.’’
Burrell, a Wairau Valley resident himself, said feedback from the community had been ‘‘fantastic’’ and supported his theory there was enough demand to justify the clinic.
The clinic would run every
"The secret to the success of an outreach clinic is earning the trust of the community ... ." Dr Buzz Burrell
Wednesday at the school, about a 30-minute drive west of Blenheim. Patients could book appointments by calling Renwick Medical Centre.
‘‘People who live rurally are often too busy to come into town to see their doctor, so since establishing the practice in Renwick three years ago, I’ve always wanted to take it into more rural areas,’’ Burrell said.
‘‘The secret to the success of an outreach clinic is earning the trust of the community, and showing them this isn’t a short-term thing, otherwise I wouldn’t expect the clinic to gain any traction.
‘‘I hope it will carry on after I’m gone.’’
If the Wairau Valley clinic was a success, Burrell would consider opening another outreach clinic at St Arnaud, he said.