2026 election: What would parties do about specialist waiting times in Otago and Southland?

The central issue for patients in the Southern region is that a new hospital building does not automatically mean shorter waits for specialist appointments, scans or operations. Those improvements also depend on having enough specialists, nurses, diagnostic staff, operating capacity and funding to treat patients.

There is an important development already: the new Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opened in August 2026, and its first patients were welcomed in October. However, the inpatient building is not scheduled to open until 2031. That means patients will still need a credible plan for accessing specialist care during the intervening years. New Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opensNew Dunedin Hospital

1. What the new Dunedin Hospital will actually deliver

6

The project, known as Whakatuputupu, is being delivered in two stages.

Facility	Expected delivery
Outpatient building	Opened in 2026
Inpatient building	Scheduled to open in 2031

The new outpatient building is a five-storey, $440 million facility serving approximately 352,000 people across Otago and Southland.

It brings together services including:

• Orthopaedics and ophthalmology.
• Women's and children's health.
• Respiratory medicine.
• Radiology, MRI, CT and other imaging.
• Specialist outpatient clinics.
• Day surgery and medical procedures.

The Government says that, once fully operational, the additional capacity will support approximately:

• 1,700 more day-surgery procedures annually.
• 13,300 more medical imaging appointments annually.
• 2,700 more medical day-stay appointments annually.

These are projected additional annual service capacities, not guarantees that every patient waiting for care will be seen sooner. New Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opensNew Dunedin Hospital

The inpatient building will eventually provide 351 beds, expandable to 404, 22 operating theatres, an expanded emergency department and intensive-care facilities.

The important distinction: the outpatient building can start increasing diagnostic and specialist capacity before 2031, but the full inpatient and surgical redevelopment will take longer.

2. What the political parties are proposing

The following comparison covers the major parties' published 2026 health policies, using information available as at 30 October 2026.

One important qualification: most parties have announced national policies rather than specific commitments to Otago and Southland. I have separated measures that could directly affect specialist waiting lists from policies that might help indirectly.

National

Main approach: continue expanding treatment capacity and use both public and private providers.

National points to:

• Its Elective Boost programme, which it says has delivered 40,000 procedures using public and private capacity.
• Budget 2026 funding intended to support another 24,000 planned-care treatments.
• Continued use of health targets, including the target that 95% of patients receive their first specialist assessment within four months.
• More medical training places, including expansion at the University of Otago.
• Increased funding for medicines and cancer treatment.

What this could mean in the Southern region: More elective procedures and additional specialist capacity could reduce waiting times, provided funding and staff are available locally or through other providers.

What to look for: A commitment to maintain or expand Elective Boost for Southern patients, and transparent reporting of how many Otago and Southland patients receive treatment through it.

Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident DoctorsHealth targets

Labour

Main approach: improve hospital capacity, staffing and access to primary care.

Labour's 2026 proposals include:

• An immediate review of hospital waiting times and bed shortages if elected.
• Identifying hospital beds that could be opened with appropriate staffing.
• Addressing staffing and discharge bottlenecks.
• Three free GP appointments annually through its proposed Medicard.
• Removing the $5 prescription charge for people entitled to publicly funded healthcare from July 2027.
• More GP appointments and investment in primary care.
• A family doctor loan scheme intended to encourage more GPs into owner-operated practices.

Labour has also said it would end the nursing hiring freeze and offer jobs to eligible New Zealand-trained graduate nurses.

What this could mean in the Southern region: More staffed hospital beds and better patient flow could help people move through hospital and make room for planned treatment. Better GP access could also help people with chronic conditions receive care earlier.

However, the immediate review is not itself a commitment to a particular number of additional specialist appointments in Dunedin, Invercargill or elsewhere in the Southern region.

Election 2026: Labour pledges to carry out immediate review of hospital wait times and bed shortagesNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

Green Party

Main approach: substantial additional public health investment and a long-term workforce plan.

The Greens announced in October:

• An additional $3 billion in public health funding every year for four years, totalling $30 billion.
• More investment in hospital and emergency care.
• A long-term plan to train, recruit and retain doctors, specialists, nurses and allied health professionals.
• Stronger primary, preventative and community healthcare.
• Improved staffing levels and working conditions.

The Greens argue that the health system needs additional investment to rebuild capacity and improve access.

What this could mean in the Southern region: If additional funding translates into more specialist staff, clinics, diagnostic appointments and treatment capacity, it could help reduce waiting lists.

The outstanding question is how much additional funding would reach Southern services, which specialties would receive priority and how quickly additional staff could be recruited.

Greens to deliver more staff, shorter wait times and a healthier country with significant health investmentNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

New Zealand First

Main approach: a dedicated fund to reduce waiting lists and more doctors.

One of the more directly relevant proposals for specialist waiting lists is NZ First's proposed:

$925 million

Annual GP-controlled Waitlist Reduction Fund

NZ First proposes allowing GPs to purchase approved specialist consultations and operations for patients on waiting lists.

Proposed annual funding, not an existing Southern-region allocation.

Other proposals include:

• Recruiting approximately 2,000 additional doctors nationally.
• Making it easier for appropriately registered overseas doctors to work in New Zealand.
• Nurse practitioner-led digital health clinics in areas where staffing is difficult.
• Reducing administrative workloads for health professionals.
• Increasing medicines funding through a proposed new medicines agency.

What this could mean in the Southern region: The waiting-list fund could potentially give patients another route to specialist consultations and procedures, including through approved providers outside the public hospital system.

The critical details still to establish are:

• Whether patients already waiting for a public specialist appointment would qualify.
• Whether the scheme would cover specialist assessments as well as operations.
• Whether patients could access providers outside Dunedin.
• How continuity of care would work for people with long-term conditions.

Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryElection 2026 and health: promises, priorities and delivery

ACT

Main approach: expand the role of primary care, pharmacies and private-sector participation.

ACT's published health proposals include:

• A $400 million funding boost aimed at retaining GPs in New Zealand and attracting more from overseas.
• Allowing pharmacists to manage more everyday and long-term health conditions, order blood tests and adjust medication within GP-set limits.
• Increasing the proportion of health spending allocated to medicines.
• Supporting a national cancer centre with campuses in Auckland and Christchurch, using public and private investment.

What this could mean in the Southern region: More GPs and pharmacists able to manage appropriate conditions could ease pressure on specialist services.

However, ACT's proposed national cancer centre campuses are not in Dunedin or Invercargill. Its published policies do not amount to a specific commitment to additional Southern specialist clinics or operations.

NZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident DoctorsCan the health system deliver parties' election promises?

Opportunity Party

Main approach: a longer-term, cross-party health strategy.

Opportunity proposes:

• A 10-year health plan supported across political parties.
• Increasing health spending from approximately 7.4% to 9% of GDP.
• Increasing the proportion of funding going to primary care.
• Greater emphasis on prevention and earlier treatment.

What this could mean in the Southern region: A longer-term funding commitment could help with workforce planning and the recruitment and retention of specialists.

However, the published proposal does not specify a Southern-region waiting-list reduction programme or additional Dunedin specialist appointments.

NZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident DoctorsElection 2026 and health: promises, priorities and delivery

Te Pāti Māori

Main approach: prevention, Māori-led healthcare and culturally safe services.

Its published proposals emphasise:

• Shifting healthcare towards prevention and whānau wellbeing.
• Strengthening Māori-led health services and decision-making.
• Improving accessibility and cultural safety.
• Supporting gender-affirming healthcare within the public system.

These policies could affect how healthcare is delivered and accessed by Māori patients in Otago and Southland.

However, I have not identified a specific published commitment to reducing Southern specialist waiting times by a stated amount or providing additional specialist appointments during construction.

NZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

3. How serious is the waiting-time problem?

The national health targets provide a useful way to assess whether political promises are translating into actual access.

The Government's targets are:

Type of care	Target
First specialist assessment	95% within 4 months
Elective treatment	95% within 4 months
Cancer treatment	90% within 31 days of decision to treat

Health targets

The latest national results available in the material reviewed (January–March 2026) showed:

• Only 61.2% of patients received their first specialist assessment within four months.
• Only 64.9% received elective treatment within four months.

These figures are national, not specific to Dunedin. Access to care continuing to improve across a range of health indicators

There is also a particular concern for Southern patients. An RNZ report published on 30 October 2026 noted that more than 40% of patients in the Southern and Northland districts were waiting longer than four months for elective treatment. Can the health system deliver parties' election promises?

It is worth distinguishing two different waiting lists:

• First specialist assessment: waiting to see a specialist after referral.
• Elective treatment: waiting for an operation or other planned treatment after assessment.

Improving one does not necessarily resolve the other.

4. What should you ask parties about Otago and Southland?

Given that you rely on specialist appointments for a long-term health condition, I would look beyond general promises to improve the health system.

These are particularly relevant questions to put to candidates and party health spokespeople.

Questions for the 2026 election candidates

1. Specialist waiting lists: What specific measures will your party introduce to reduce waiting times for first specialist assessments in Otago and Southland before 2031?

2. Existing patients: How will you protect patients with chronic and complex conditions who already depend on regular specialist appointments?

3. Staffing: How many additional specialists, nurses, radiologists and other clinical staff will you fund for the Southern region?

4. Regional access: Will patients in Invercargill, Queenstown, Central Otago and rural Southland have better access to specialist appointments without always travelling to Dunedin?

5. Interim arrangements: What additional funding and treatment capacity will be available between now and the inpatient hospital opening in 2031?

6. Accountability: Will you publish quarterly waiting-time statistics specifically for the Southern region, broken down by specialty?

5. What matters particularly for people with long-term health conditions?

There are some important issues that broad hospital waiting-time targets do not necessarily capture.

• Continuity of care: If you already have a specialist, will you be able to continue seeing that specialist without disruption during the transition to the new buildings?
• Monitoring: Will patients who need regular reviews, scans or tests have those appointments protected?
• Waiting-list prioritisation: Will clinical urgency and the risk of deterioration determine priority, rather than simply the date someone joined a waiting list?
• Travel: Will additional clinics or outreach services be available across Otago and Southland?
• Communication: Will patients be told how long they can realistically expect to wait, and what to do if their condition deteriorates?

These are worth raising because a person with a long-term condition may need more than a single specialist consultation. Delays in monitoring or treatment can have consequences even if the patient eventually receives an appointment.

6. Sources to help you assess the parties

These are useful starting points for checking the actual policies rather than relying on campaign statements.

Source	What it tells you
Health NZ – New Dunedin Hospital	Project stages, facilities and opening dates
Ministry of Health – Health targets	Official waiting-time targets
Health NZ – March 2026 results	National performance figures
NZ Medical Journal – Election 2026 health policies	Independent discussion of party health proposals
NZ Resident Doctors Association – Party policy comparison	Comparison of health and workforce commitments
RNZ – Election health promises, 30 October 2026	Recent reporting on health policy and access pressures

7. The key comparison for your voting decision

Here is a way to distinguish the parties' approaches without assuming that any one proposal will necessarily succeed.

Party	Main mechanism relevant to waiting times
National	Elective Boost, additional treatment capacity and health targets
Labour	Hospital capacity, staffing, patient flow and primary-care access
Greens	Major public health funding and specialist workforce investment
NZ First	$925m annual GP-controlled waiting-list fund and doctor recruitment
ACT	More GPs, expanded pharmacy services and private-sector involvement
Opportunity	Long-term health funding and cross-party planning
Te Pāti Māori	Prevention, Māori-led healthcare and culturally safe services

One important gap across the published policies: I have not identified a clear, quantified commitment from these parties guaranteeing additional specialist appointments specifically for Otago and Southland while the inpatient hospital is being completed.

That is an important distinction to take into account when considering the election.

My suggestion is to judge each party against three practical questions:

1. Will it reduce the time you wait to see your specialist?
2. Will it protect the continuity of care you already receive?
3. Will it provide additional staff and treatment capacity in the Southern region before 2031?

A new hospital is a major investment, but the care delivered inside it is what matters to patients.

One further point: You do not need to wait until 2031 to expect better access. The outpatient building is already beginning to receive patients, so it is reasonable to ask candidates what measurable improvements they expect patients to experience during the next parliamentary term.

I can also help you examine the parties' proposals specifically from the perspective of a patient with a long-term condition, including which policies address ongoing specialist reviews, diagnostic scans, treatment continuity and the risk of deterioration while waiting.

Dunedin Hospital: what the new hospital will mean for patients in Otago and Southland

For someone living with a long-term health condition, the important question is not simply whether Dunedin gets a new hospital. It is whether you can see the right specialist, get diagnostic tests and receive treatment without waiting months while the hospital is being built.

There are two separate issues to consider in the 2026 election:

1. Long-term hospital capacity: what the new Dunedin Hospital will provide once completed.
2. Immediate access to care: what political parties propose to do about specialist waiting lists, staffing shortages and delayed treatment during construction.

The distinction matters because a new building does not automatically mean shorter waiting lists. That also requires specialists, nurses, diagnostic equipment, operating capacity and funding to run additional services.

1. What the new Dunedin Hospital will actually deliver

8

The project is being delivered in two stages.

Stage	What patients receive	Timing
Outpatient building	Specialist clinics, imaging, radiology and day procedures	Opened in 2026
Inpatient building	Emergency department, operating theatres, intensive care and inpatient wards	Expected to receive patients in 2031

The outpatient building has already welcomed its first patients, in October 2026. It brings together services including:

• Orthopaedics
• Ophthalmology
• Respiratory medicine
• Children's and women's health
• Radiology and imaging, including MRI and CT
• Day surgery.

Already opening to patients The outpatient facility is expected to support additional annual capacity of approximately:

• 1,700 day-surgery procedures.
• 13,300 medical imaging appointments.
• 2,700 medical day-stay appointments.

These are projected additional annual service volumes, not guarantees that every patient will be seen sooner. New Dunedin HospitalNew Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opens

What arrives in 2031?

nzdoctor.co.nz

The planned inpatient building includes:

• 351 beds initially, with capacity to expand to 404.
• 22 operating theatres, expandable to 24.
• 20 short-stay surgical beds.
• 58 emergency department spaces.
• Intensive care and high-dependency facilities.
• Inpatient wards.

This will be a major regional specialist centre for approximately 352,000 people across Otago and Southland. New Dunedin HospitalDecision reached on Dunedin HospitalNew Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opens

The important limitation: the inpatient building is not expected to receive patients until 2031. During the intervening years, staffing, maintenance of existing facilities and the capacity to deliver specialist appointments remain critical.

2. What the political parties propose for shorter waiting times

The following comparison uses published 2026 election policies and announcements available as at 30 October 2026. I have separated policies that directly address specialist waiting lists from those that might improve access indirectly.

National

Incumbent governing party

National's approach is to expand capacity through existing public services and private-sector providers.

Its measures include:

• Elective Boost, using public and private hospitals to deliver additional procedures.
• Funding intended to support 24,000 additional planned-care treatments through Budget 2026.
• Expanding medical training places at the University of Otago and other universities.
• Maintaining health targets, including targets for specialist assessments and elective treatment.
• Increasing cancer treatment capacity and access to medicines.

What this could mean in the South: additional procedures could help patients who need surgery, provided local or contracted providers have the staff and capacity. Medical training expansion could help over time, but new graduates will not immediately become experienced specialists.

The key question is how much of the additional treatment capacity will actually be allocated to Southern patients. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryElection 2026 and health: promises, priorities and delivery

Labour

Labour's emphasis is on improving access to general practice and reducing the financial barriers that can prevent people from getting care early.

Its 2026 proposals include:

• Three free GP consultations annually through a Medicard.
• A Family Doctor Loan Scheme to help doctors buy into owner-operated practices.
• More than 4.5 million additional GP appointments through phone triage, technology and targeted funding.
• Guaranteed employment for eligible New Zealand-trained graduate nurses from 2027.
• Free prescriptions from July 2027.
• Investment in hospital repairs and essential infrastructure.

What this could mean in the South: better access to GPs could help people obtain referrals, manage chronic conditions and avoid deterioration while waiting for hospital care.

However, these measures do not amount to a dedicated commitment to clear Otago and Southland specialist outpatient waiting lists. Labour's 2026 Election PoliciesElection 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

Green Party

The Greens have announced an additional $3 billion annually for public health funding, over four years.

Their proposals include:

• A long-term workforce plan to train, recruit and retain specialists, doctors, nurses and allied health professionals.
• Improved staffing levels and employment conditions.
• Greater investment in public hospitals and emergency services.
• Expanded primary and community care.
• More publicly funded healthcare and greater access to rural services.

What this could mean in the South: their approach could increase the resources available to Southern services, including staffing and specialist capacity.

The important detail to investigate is how much of the proposed additional funding would go to regional hospitals, and how quickly specialists would be recruited and retained in Dunedin, Invercargill and other Southern communities.

The Greens have also previously campaigned for Dunedin Hospital to be built to its full promised capacity. Greens to deliver more staff, shorter wait times and a healthier country with significant health investmentGovt set to break promise on Dunedin HospitalElection 2026 and health: promises, priorities and delivery

ACT

ACT's approach centres on increasing provider choice, productivity and the use of non-hospital healthcare professionals.

Its proposals include:

• Greater use of private providers to reduce public hospital waiting lists.
• Enabling pharmacists to manage more everyday conditions and stable long-term health conditions.
• Allowing pharmacists to order blood tests and adjust medicines within appropriate clinical limits.
• An additional $400 million for general practice over four years, announced in October 2026.
• Increased investment in medicines.

What this could mean in the South: purchasing additional treatment from private providers could help some patients receive procedures sooner, rather than waiting for public hospital capacity.

However, the policy detail does not establish how much additional specialist outpatient capacity would be purchased specifically for Otago and Southland, or whether all specialist services needed by patients with complex chronic conditions would be available privately. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryACT New ZealandACT New ZealandNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

New Zealand First

NZ First has one of the more direct proposals for reducing waiting lists.

It proposes a $925 million annual GP-controlled Waitlist Reduction Fund.

The idea is that GPs could use the fund to purchase approved specialist consultations and operations for patients on waiting lists.

Other proposals include:

• Recruiting approximately 2,000 additional doctors, with an emphasis on overseas recruitment.
• Making it easier for appropriately registered doctors to enter general practice.
• Nurse practitioner-led digital health clinics in areas with difficulty attracting GPs.
• Reducing administrative workloads for health professionals.
• Increasing funding for medicines.

What this could mean in the South: the proposed fund could potentially allow a GP to arrange a specialist consultation or procedure outside the usual public hospital pathway.

For someone waiting for a specialist assessment, this is particularly relevant.

But important questions remain: who qualifies, how patients are prioritised, whether the fund covers specialist consultations as well as surgery in practice, and whether Southern providers have enough capacity to deliver the additional services. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and delivery2023 Election PoliciesNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

Te Pāti Māori

Te Pāti Māori focuses on Māori-led health services, prevention and whānau-centred healthcare.

Its proposals include:

• Rebuilding and strengthening Māori-led health governance.
• Strengthening Māori health providers.
• Improving culturally safe and accessible healthcare.
• Shifting resources towards prevention and whānau wellbeing.

These proposals could improve access and continuity of care for Māori patients in Otago and Southland.

However, the published 2026 policy comparison does not identify a specific regional specialist waiting-list reduction programme or a dedicated Southern hospital staffing commitment. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

Opportunity Party

Opportunity proposes a cross-party 10-year health plan, called Healthy People.

Its main proposals include:

• Increasing public health expenditure towards 9% of GDP.
• Increasing the share of funding allocated to primary care.
• Improving preventive and community healthcare.
• Developing long-term workforce planning across political terms.

What this could mean in the South: longer-term planning could help address recurring workforce shortages and provide more certainty for regional services.

However, it is not a specific short-term programme for clearing Southern specialist waiting lists while the hospital is being constructed. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

3. How serious is the waiting-time problem?

The Ministry of Health's 2025 reporting provides useful context.

National specialist waiting-time performance

62%

Patients receiving a first specialist assessment within four months, at June 2025.

Actual: 62%

2030 target: 95%

63.9%

Patients receiving elective treatment within four months, at June 2025.

The national target is for 95% of patients to receive their first specialist assessment within four months by 2030.

The Ministry also identifies specialist workforce shortages and geographical differences in access as ongoing problems. These figures are national, not specific to Dunedin or Invercargill. Health and Independence Report 2025 online version

For someone with a chronic condition, there is another important distinction: being seen by a specialist for the first time is not the same as receiving ongoing specialist reviews, diagnostic tests or treatment.

A party might improve its first-assessment figures without necessarily resolving delays in follow-up appointments.

4. Comparing the parties on the issues that matter

Here is a practical comparison, without ranking the parties.

Party	Main mechanism for improving access	Specific Southern waiting-list commitment?
National	More procedures, public/private capacity and workforce expansion	Not identified
Labour	More GP access, nurse recruitment and hospital investment	Not identified
Greens	Additional health funding and workforce expansion	Not identified
ACT	Private providers, greater professional scope and GP funding	Not identified
NZ First	$925m annual GP-controlled waiting-list fund	National proposal, not Southern-specific
Te Pāti Māori	Māori-led services and community healthcare	Not identified
Opportunity	Long-term funding and workforce planning	Not identified

The comparison draws on the New Zealand Medical Journal's October 2026 election analysis and the New Zealand Resident Doctors' Association's party policy guide. Election 2026 and health: promises, priorities and deliveryNZ Election 2026 Health Policies for Resident Doctors

One important finding is that none of these published policies, as identified in the sources reviewed, provides a clearly quantified guarantee of additional specialist appointments specifically for Otago and Southland during the construction period.

That is a significant gap between national election promises and the practical experience of Southern patients.

5. What I would scrutinise before deciding how to vote

Given that specialist appointments are important to managing a long-term condition, I would pay particular attention to six questions when assessing party commitments.

1. Specialist appointment guarantees: Will there be a funded programme to reduce Southern patients' waits for first assessments and follow-up appointments before 2031?

2. Specialist recruitment: What will parties do to attract and retain specialists in Dunedin and Invercargill, particularly in shortage specialties?

3. Diagnostic capacity: Will additional MRI, CT, ultrasound and other diagnostic appointments be available to patients who need them?

4. Continuity of care: How will patients with long-term conditions avoid losing access to their usual specialists during the transition between old and new hospital facilities?

5. Regional access: Will patients from Queenstown, Central Otago, Gore, Balclutha and Southland receive improved access without having to travel unnecessarily to Dunedin?

6. Accountability: Will the Government publish Southern-specific waiting-time figures, broken down by specialty, hospital and first versus follow-up appointments?

The last question is particularly important. National statistics can conceal substantial differences between specialties and regions.

6. Sources to examine before election day

These are useful starting points for checking the actual policy commitments rather than relying on campaign statements.

• Health New Zealand – New Dunedin Hospital project — construction stages, services and capacity.
• Ministry of Health – Health and Independence Report 2025 — waiting-time performance and national targets.
• New Zealand Medical Journal – Election 2026 health policy analysis — comparison of the major parties.
• NZ Resident Doctors' Association – 2026 election health and workforce comparison — detailed party policy summaries.
• Labour's health policies.
• Green Party 2026 manifesto.
• ACT's GP funding announcement.
• NZ First's Make NZ Healthy announcement.

My overall assessment of the policy differences

There are three different approaches worth distinguishing:

• Expanding immediate treatment capacity: National and ACT emphasise additional procedures and greater use of private providers. NZ First proposes a dedicated waiting-list purchasing fund.
• Building public healthcare capacity: The Greens emphasise additional public funding and workforce investment, while Labour focuses on primary care access, nursing employment and hospital infrastructure.
• Long-term system reform: Te Pāti Māori emphasises Māori-led healthcare, while Opportunity proposes a cross-party 10-year funding and workforce plan.

These approaches address different parts of the problem. None should be confused with a guaranteed reduction in waiting times for a particular Southern specialty.

One final point: the new outpatient building is already starting to provide additional services. It is worth asking parties how they will make sure that its additional capacity is fully staffed and used, rather than simply counting the number of new rooms and machines.

Your ability to receive timely, continuing specialist care should be an important measure of whether the hospital investment and the parties' health policies are delivering what Southern patients actually need.

I can also put together a more detailed Dunedin and Southland election comparison, focusing specifically on specialist follow-up appointments, chronic-condition management, diagnostic scans and access to specialists outside Dunedin, including what each party has committed to fund and what remains unspecified.