Laboratory and Ear , Nose & Throat facilities ( opened 1927 )
In August 1927 , Dr Wadmore recommended to the Board the utilisation of two side rooms in the Main Block , one to be used as an Ear , Nose and Throat specialist ’ s room and the other as a laboratory . In 1969 a separate building was constructed close to , but behind , the Maternity Annex to house a temporary laboratory . In 2011 Laboratory services were relocated onto the first floor of the Godfrey Santon Block .
Mortuary built 1923 , 1950 & 1976
The original Mortuary was a small hut 57 that was moved into place next to the Boiler House soon after the new hospital opened in 1923 . In May 1936 the Board approved the construction of a new Mortuary building but by June 1937 the minutes , under the heading ‘ Mortuary ,’ reveal that :
The Secretary reported that owing to the necessity for some temporary accommodation , the chairman had arranged with Messrs Boon , Sullivan & Luke Ltd . to construct a shed from materials available from the old fowl house .
It was not until 1950 that a new ‘ stand-alone ’ Mortuary was erected towards the back ( south ) of the hospital site behind two separate storage sheds . In 1976 a modern Mortuary was built even further towards the back of the site and the earlier building was taken over by the Electricians as a workshop . In May 2011 the 1950 Mortuary was demolished and the 1976 Mortuary was adapted for use as the site redevelopment office . In recent years all Mortuary services required by the hospital have been met by the facilities available at Rotorua Hospital .
The Maternity Annex , opened May 1927 , added to in 1955
A small Maternity unit had been in operation at the Māori Mission Hospital shortly after it opened in 1913 , and there were a number of private Maternity Hospitals operating in Whakatane at the time . One of these was on the corner of James Street and Hinemoa Street , but by September 1925 the question of the erection of a separate Maternity Ward at Whakatāne Hospital was being seriously investigated by the Board . In the following year estimates had been drawn up for a 12-bed Maternity Annex with a tiled roof , either built in wood for £ 2,280 or concrete for £ 3,880 . This price was inclusive of lighting , drainage , ‘ sanitary ware ’, a covered way to the Main Building and Architects fees . The Health Department approved a building of wooden construction and by July 1926 a decision had been made to employ a nurse with midwifery training at a maximum salary of £ 120 per annum .
Two tenders were let , one for the construction of the building and the other for the installation of the heating and sterilisation equipment . Local companies Boon & Sullivan (£ 112.0.0 to build ) and A & T Burt (£ 950.0.0 to install ) submitted the lowest prices and were successful . A few years later the building was enlarged to accommodate 22 beds .
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Adrianna Harawira et al , Whakatāne Hospital re-union 1988 , ( Whakatāne , Mann Printing Ltd ) 1988 , pg 9
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