Hospital Board claiming $14.9M

Press, 26 April 1988, Page 9

Hospital Board claiming $14.9M

A bone marrow transplant unit in Canterbury could be funded by a special service development grant.

The Canterbury Hos-; pital Board has been told that the only way it! will receive the $14.9 milliorj ■ it • is | under-funded is through service develop-! ■ ment grants. I; '-I The ! chairman of the Mr Tom .Griggf said yesterday that a bone, marrow’ | transplant j unit was.on the list of projects; for wtjiicti] the board was seeking gijants. Aispl on; the list | were cardia'c surgery services; geriatric services . and about) $5 million j that would! be used to improve ! existing services, said Mr ' Grigg.]' |. ; ■ ]■' I The need tor a' Done marrow transplant; unit has t>een ; highlighted by the dase of an Oamarii i woman. Mrs Heather Freegard. who relapsed during a fo.ur-month wait for an autologous; trariplant’(using her own marrow)/ j ' | '. ■ | The relapse meant she was denied, the. liutolpgous. i transplant : which would ’have improved her chances jof long-term .recovery! j j--' * / In (the Hast three [.yeaijs, .. seveifai patients have died while for a bone marrow transplant.) . i .

Mr 'Grigg said the;- cardiac services w-ere at the top of the list for funding, but priorities had) not been set for the remaining services I because they were being sent as a package. ! ’ , I | . "In general, we are putting in for services worth the full sl’4. million because these 'are the things! We' feel 'we should) have, to come up 'to equity with everybody else. i IJ "We i really need ; the lot." Mr Grigg said! The cardiac unit|would cost ’ $2.5 .million to build and equip find about another $2.5 pillion a year to staff and! maintain. Trie bone marrfow transplant unit would cost about $300,000 for alterations and equipment.and about $500,000 .a wear to maintain. ' i : The running ’ costs would be met by the service development grants.Mr Grigg- said. "The ongoing costs come through the) development 'grams and are built’into our base allocation." '■. .) . i “1 ■ ’ Mr Grigg said it would probably be. "a month lor two'-' before the board was told which grants it would receive. ;