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START Service Goes Primary
START Service Goes Primary
The
Waikato District Health Board Supported Transfer and
Accelerated Rehabilitation Team (START) is moving to
Northcare Primary Health on Pukete Rd on 11
June.
The START team is currently located at
Waikato Hospital and is a service which promotes
rehabilitation in the home, rather than in
hospital.
START is made up of two components:
admission avoidance and supported discharge, and tries to
prevent hospital admission from the Emergency Department in
the first place by providing appropriate seven-day support
for patients in the home with normal services such as Meals
on Wheels and Home Based Support Services.
The
START team works with patients and their families to set
rehabilitation goals, and develop a plan to reach those
goals.
The team visits up to four times a day,
seven days a week for up to six weeks, to provide
rehabilitation for the patient.
“So while the
move won’t directly affect patients as the care is offered
in-home anyway, it provides an opportunity to strengthen the
service’s links with primary care,” said Waikato DHB
Disability Support Link manager Kim Holt.
“There
will be no change to the service offered. START will
continue to provide services to support discharge from
hospital and avoid admission altogether with the aim of
getting people well in their homes rather than in
hospital.”
The same phone and fax numbers will
remain for the next six months and patients will be notified
directly when contact details do change.
A total of
665 patients have been cared for through the START service
since inception two years
ago.
ENDS
Waikato District Health Board
Healthy People. Excellent Care
Waikato District Health Board (DHB) employs over 6500 people and plans, funds and provides hospital and health services to more than 391,770 people in a region covering eight per cent of New Zealand.
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