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Acute Medicine

Information Resources

WBOP PHO Acute Demand Service (ADS)

GP and ED access to services for patients with selected acute medical conditions (formally WBOP PHO Coordinated Primary Options).

Acute Demand Services

What WBOP PHO Acute Demand Services are provided?

Acute patient care for patients referred and re-directed from Tauranga Emergency Department and St John Ambulance.  Appointments are arranged by the Acute Demand Service Team for eligible acute care.

WBOP PHO Acute Demand Aged Residential Care Team: 

Any person enrolled with the WBOP PHO, NMO, Waihi Beach Medical Centre, Waihi Health Centre or Waihi Family Doctors (Hauraki PHO) and domiciled to the Western Bay of Plenty.

  • Out of town or overseas visitors.
  • Cellulitis management for children less than 15 years of age.
  • Mental Health (services available through CPO Mental Health).

Best Practice: Select the relevant patient in your electronic patient record system and then go to the Best Practice main menu. Select 'WBOP PHO Acute Demand Forms' to start the electronic referral process. 

  • Choose the relevant service and click 'Continue'.
  • Complete the form with clinical details and then click 'Notify' to send to the WBOP PHO Acute Demand Service for a case number.
  • The form will be returned electronically with the ‘case number’ at the top of the form. Appointments are arranged for ‘Ultrasounds’ by the referral coordinator and the patient contacted to agree to the appointment time. For plain film radiology the patient can go straight away to private radiology MEDEX or BAY RADIOLOGY without an appointment.
  • For x-rays, the form (with case number) is printed off and given to the patient to present at Bay Radiology or Medex. It is aimed for an x-ray to be done within 30mins of arrival. The radiologist immediately reports on all radiology and the result phoned through to the practice. The GP must be available for this.
  • Practices can check if the form has been returned with the case number by going to the main menu on Best Practice and checking the 'Notifications' and status of the form. Click 'Settings' to find the access to 'Notifications'.
  • The 'status' of the form will indicate the processing action:
    • Awaiting Processing (Only PHO access).
    • Processed (Only Practice access).
    • Completed (Only PHO access).

Referrals and Advice

Primary Care / GP telephone "hotline"

The DHB recognises that primary care clinicians need to be able to access the hospital switchboard quickly. Calls to the following numbers will be prioritised.

The BOPDHB has unified its switchboard system across Whakatāne and Tauranga Hospitals and so please specify which hospital you are trying to contact when you call.

Ordinarily referrals from General Practice should go to the appropriate specialty. If a patient needs to be referred to the ED team, contact the Duty ED SMO via the Hospital switchboard. 

Tauranga Assessment Planning Unit

The Assessment Planning Unit (APU) is designed to take direct referrals from GPs for patients who are well enough to be cared for in a ward based environment (not requiring stabilisation in the ED).  Patients referred to hospital should present to ED reception where they will be triaged to the APU if clinically appropriate.

Referrals from General Practice should be made directly to the appropriate on-call specialist team, giving direct access to specialist care. 

BOPDHB Referral Receipt Centre

Referrals to Tauranga and Whakatāne Hospitals are accepted through the bestpractise e-referral system, by email: ReferralCentre@bopdhb.govt.nz or by post:

Referral Receipt Centre
BOPDHB
Private bag 12024
Tauranga, 3143 

If you have any issues or concerns with a referral contact the referral centre on 0800 333 477.