A $2 million Canterbury Charity Hospital upgrade will help ease long waiting lists, the hospital's founder says.

The hospital's premises were doubled when the charitable trust bought the neighbouring house in Harewood Rd for $440,000 after the February 2011 earthquake, allowing it to offer endoscopy and dental services in addition to the day surgery and counselling services it already provided for those in need.

Hospital trust chairman Phil Bagshaw said the extension would help fulfil the region's "unmet" health needs.

A huge demand for counselling services followed the quake, but the hospital had required more space to be able to continue meeting the need.

There had been "no shortage" of patients for the new dental clinic, which opened on June 13, while the endoscopy centre, which would open on Friday, already had patients lined up.

Bagshaw said the hospital saw "lots" of patients every week who had been unable to receive an endoscopy from Christchurch Hospital because of the long waiting list. "The public hospital tries to keep up, [but] demand is very high," he said.

The charity hospital provides treatment for those who require a service the public hospital does not offer or who have been turned away from the public hospital.

The patient is required to sign a letter with their GP stating they cannot afford to have the treatment done privately and do not have health insurance or qualify for ACC help.

The charity hospital's extension cost about $2 million, although the figure did not include all of the equipment needed, and about half of the money still needed to be raised.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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