Palmerston North Hospital

What’s on this page?

Audit report summaries for this public hospital can be downloaded below.

From 1 June 2009 to 28 February 2022, public hospitals were audited against Health and Disability Services Standards NZS 8134:2008. These standards have been updated, and from 28 February 2022 public hospitals are audited against Ngā paerewa Health and disability services standard.

Audit summaries include:

• an overview of the public hospital’s performance
• improvements required as a result of audit findings.

How are public hospitals audited?

The Ministry of Health certifies public hospitals to ensure they provide safe, appropriate care for patients and meet the standards set out in the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001.

An audit is conducted by an auditing agency approved by the Ministry. The team of auditors spend up to a week visiting public hospitals and other services. The of auditors review documentation, interview patients and staff, and observe everyday practice.

A key part of the audit process is for the auditors to follow the journeys of randomly selected patients through their experience within the public hospital. This involves interviewing the patient and family, reviewing their records and interviewing staff from areas of the public hospital who have provided services to the patient.

The auditors review aspects of service delivery against the relevant standards. If a public hospital is not fully compliant with aspect of the standard, the hospital is required to make improvements. Any required improvements are noted in the auditors’ report to the Ministry. The Ministry then monitors the hospital to ensure that the improvements are made within required timeframes.

All public hospitals are certified for three years. A surveillance audit occurs mid-way through the certification period to review service standards and to verify that the required improvements have been embedded in practice.