The Auckland Regional Charity Hospital (ARCH) has changed its name to Aotearoa Charity Hospital to better reflect its expanding scope to provide charitable medical services to a wider geographical area of New Zealand.
ARCH founder and director Dr Luigi Sussman said, “The reference to Auckland can be confusing for patients and medical professionals who may not realise we also assist patients outside the Auckland area. The name change removes that (perceived) barrier. For quite some time, we have been treating patients from the upper South Island to Northland, so the change just makes sense.”
ARCH has had an increase in cataract cases, particularly from parts of the country where the threshold for public treatment is high, said Dr Sussman. “Generally, ARCH patients are elderly, on low incomes and often have other health issues. Their quality of life is severely impacted and poor eyesight can lead to falls, loss of driver’s licence and other complications.”
While ARCH facilitates treatment for patients outside of Auckland, most operations are performed in Auckland at established, accredited private facilities that allow the charity to use them on a cost-only basis, so a potential patient will probably still need to travel to Auckland for treatment, he said.
To refer to ARCH, visit https://www.aotearoacharityhospital.org/
