Minister of Health clashes with DHB
A health board boss says problems at Auckland’s Middlemore Hospital were ‘‘spelt out succinctly’’ in papers handed to Health Minister David Clark before he claimed not to know about them.
Clark visited the hospital on March 13 where he says he was told about the rot, mould and sewerage in the walls of Middlemore Hospital’s Scott building.
However, documents obtained by Stuff reveal that Clark was provided a dossier of information at that meeting and was specifically told by Counties Manukau District Health Board acting chief executive Gloria Johnson that there were ‘‘similar problems in multiple buildings’’.
Clark said yesterday there was ‘‘no mention of any other urgent works’’ other than the Scott building and yet ‘‘in the next day they were basically in the media about it’’.
‘‘There was only one building specifically brought up in that meeting and that was the Scott building,’’ Clark said.
In an email from Johnson to board members on March 23, she says the documents provided to Clark and his adviser ‘‘spells out succinctly the scale and nature of the facilities issues’’.
‘‘It is very disappointing that we are now being accused by the media and the minister of ‘covering up’ issues,’’ she wrote.
Johnson’s email came on the back of Clark doing media interviews earlier that day where he said he was ‘‘disappointed the other issues weren’t raised ... during the meeting’’.
Clark estimated there’s about $14 billion of building work that needs to be replaced in the next decade.
National Party health spokesman Michael Woodhouse said that serious questions had been raised about ‘‘whether the minister had misled New Zealanders about his knowledge of problems’’.
‘‘[Clark] has been asked questions about his knowledge of the problems at Middlemore for some time now and these documents indicate that he would have known more than he’s admitted,’’ Woodhouse said.