Source: Radio New Zealand
The clinic cares for people with serious mental health problems or disabilities who have committed or who are charged with serious crimes. RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
A new 60-bed mental health unit has opened at Auckland’s Mason Clinic, the country’s largest forensic psychiatric service.
Health New Zealand said the $162 million, three-storey building called E Tū Wairua Hinengaro will replace leaky, ageing units with ongoing air quality issues.
The clinic cares for people with serious mental health problems or disabilities who have committed or who are charged with serious crimes.
Mental health and addiction national director Phil Grady said the new unit would result in better outcomes for patients and a better working environment for staff.
“This facility represents the latest chapter in a long and important story, the evolution of the Mason Clinic and of forensic mental healthcare in New Zealand,” he said.
“The true value of E Tū Wairua Hinengaro is that it enables improved models of care and gives staff new options to safely manage patients’ needs – options that were simply not possible in the old units.”
The first patients were expected to move into the unit in late February.
Health NZ said recruitment was underway for an additional 57 full-time staff and there had been a good response from candidates.
E Tū Wairua Hinengaro, meaning quality of mind, was significantly bigger than the old units, with 10,000 square metres of floor space, Health NZ said.
It said the unit was a safe, recovery-focused place, featuring secure courtyards and enhanced ventilation.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
