Fix for rotten hospital

The Government will sink $11.5 million into fixing decay at one of the country’s busiest hospitals as a report revealed it was riddled with mould.

Documents released to Stuff under the Official Information Act showed several buildings at Middlemore Hospital in South Auckland were rotting and mouldy.

The buildings include Kidz First Children’s Hospital, the Scott and McIndoe buildings and the Manukau SuperClinic.

The documents showed the decay at the Kidz First and Manukau SuperClinic buildings was so advanced there was a danger it would breach the walls and contaminate the air.

An independent investigation showed the Counties Manukau District Health Board faced a multi-million dollar repair bill.

It also found 90 per cent of the timber framing looked at in the Kidz First hospital was decaying and the wood was soaked, at up to 98 per cent moisture levels.

There were several mentions of the presence of stachybotrys, a toxic black mould.

Health Minister David Clark yesterday said the Government had approved an extra $11.5 million in funding for building works at the hospital.

‘‘The DHB has been managing this situation for some years and a range of investigations, remediation and safety measures have been adopted,’’ he said.

‘‘More work is obviously required and I will be seeking answers directly from the DHB about its plan to deal with this situation.’’

The DHB said patient safety was not compromised by the mould.

Margie Apa, the DHB’s director of population health strategy, said the DHB’s infection specialists had assured it the presence of fungal growth wasn’t an issue.