Marlborough Urgent Care Centre returns to 8 to 8 on Monday 20 February 2023
Effective Monday, 20 February 2023, Marlborough Urgent Care Centre will return to its usual hours of 8am to 8pm.
Since September of last year, the Centre has been operating under the reduced hours of 8 am to 5 pm due to staffing shortages. General Manager Lawrence Laus says he is looking forward to providing the community with after-hours care again, as well as reducing the pressure on ED and GPs.
“It has been a challenging time and we have only been able to get through it working as a collective team,” Lawrence says.
The Marlborough Urgent Care Clinic team. General Manager Lawrence Laus is last on the right.
“We were understaffed especially due to the nursing team, but now I am confident to say we have enough staff to cover our usual operating hours.”
Thanks to active recruiting, five nurses came on board during December and January. The shortage was further alleviated when some of the Centre’s part-time and casual nurses decided to increase their hours.
Summer is always a busy time for urgent care, and Lawrence is pleased the centre will once again be able to help reduce the pressure on the emergency department and GPs. Through the period of reduced hours, Lawrence kept in communication with Wairau Hospital's Head of the Emergency Department, Andrew Morgan, and ED Charge Nurse, Simon Langford.
“Andrew and Simon's ED teams have provided such excellent care, as well as support for us. We're pleased we'll be able to better support them from now on.
“An extra three hours might not seem like much,” Lawrence says, “but being open three hours later is really helpful not only for the patients but also for GP practices and for the Emergency Department. We’ll be able to take a big load off the ED. Also, it’ll be a help to the community for them to access care after-hours for urgent medical needs.”
Lawrence says he owes the Marlborough Urgent Care Centre’s staff a huge debt of gratitude.
“My thanks go to the staff—the doctors, the nurses, the receptionists. They work really hard. We really have a solid team here. We have good communication. I trust them so much because they do a great job. The Boards and Beth [Tester, CEO] have been so supportive of us. I want to thank the staff, they have done a great job and are doing a great job.”
Click here for more information about the Marlborough Urgent Care Centre