Story: Hospitals

Private hospitals

Private hospitals

People can pay the full cost of medical treatments at private hospitals if they want to bypass the public hospital waiting list. In 2008 the private Mercy Hospital in Dunedin waived this requirement when it offered 35 free operations for children who were on the public waiting list. The operations were mostly ear grommet insertions, with some adenoid and tonsil removals. Two-year-old Milos Hendry is having a grommet inserted in his right ear, presumably around Christmas time.

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Otago Daily Times
Reference: 23 December 2008, p. 1
Photograph by Stephen Jaquiery

Permission of the Otago Daily Times must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Linda Bryder, 'Hospitals - Hospital funding and patient entitlement', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/27573/private-hospitals (accessed 28 March 2024)

Story by Linda Bryder, published 5 May 2011, reviewed & revised 13 Jun 2018, updated 1 Jul 2022