16 March 2018

Since being advised by Nazareth Rest Home and Hospital of their closure, Whanganui District Health Board (WDHB) has been working closely with the provider to plan the relocation of residents to other aged care facilities.

Whanganui DHB Service and Business Planning general manager Tracey Schiebli says the WDHB is working closely with Nazareth and service coordination agency, Access Ability, to help ensure the process of finding residents a new home is as smooth as possible.

“We understand Nazareth’s residents and their families will be feeling anxious, and that the closure will be unsettling for our community in general, but we want to provide assurance that our district has sufficient beds available,” says Ms Schiebli.

“Rest home bed capacity in the Whanganui district is good,” says Ms Schiebli. “So for Nazareth’s 41 residents this means there’s space in other Whanganui aged care facilities that caters to the level of care they need.”

Nazareth have confirmed they will remain open until all residents have found a new home with an alternative rest home facility.