Guide for the media

All requests for patient conditions, staff and patient interviews, photographs or filming must be made through the Communications Team.

After hours weekdays and weekends media line: 027 599 9507

Under no circumstances may interviews, filming or photography be carried out on the hospital sites without permission from the Communications Team.

If you carry out filming or photography without permission, our hospital security teams will ask you to leave the site immediately. Contacting the Communications Team  can save you time and trouble trying to track down medical staff and researchers who specialise in the subject you are covering.

Often we can put you in contact with a busy practitioner who may not otherwise understand the demands of your deadlines. View/download HBDHB Media Relations Policy.

Patient condition updates

  • We do not release any personal information regarding a patient without consent of the adult patient or, where the patient is a child, the consent of the parent or guardian.
  • We do release condition updates along with age-bracket and gender but will not confirm other details unless we have consent from the patient or their parent or guardian.
    - Stable: condition unchanged
    - Comfortable: vital signs stable, within normal limits, patient conscious and comfortable, indicators favourable
    - Serious: vital signs stable and within normal limits, patient conscious but may be uncomfortable, indicators questionable
    - Critical: vital signs unstable, not within normal limits, patient may not be conscious, indicators unfavourable
  • While we respect that some families may want to share information with the media, we respect and support other families' right to decide whether or not to engage with the media.
  • Often patients/parents will agree to pass on additional details to our communications team. We will obtain consent for this release of information as quickly as possible and report these additional facts.
  • When patients or their family members decline consent for release of information and request that all information about them or their child remains confidential, we are unable to comment on such patients.
  • Confirmation of a patient's death occurs only with family consent and after notifying next of kin. Sometimes we will refer you to the police media liaison officer rather than comment ourselves.