25 March 2025
Richard Shelton
[FYI request #30048 email]
Tēnā koe Richard
Your request for official information, reference: HNZ00082332
Thank you for your email on 15 March 2025, asking Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora for the
following under the Of icial Information Act 1982 (the Act):
“2. IT Staffing Levels and Operational Cost Efficiency
2.1 Impact of IT Staffing on Overall Healthcare Costs
2.1.1 IT Staffing Levels and Cost Efficiency
I request information on:
2.1.1.1 The current IT workforce size at Health Al iance NZ.
2.1.1.2 Any evaluations or business cases assessing whether increasing or decreasing IT
staffing levels affects operational costs (e.g., whether a larger IT workforce improves
efficiency and reduces long-term spending on IT-related disruptions).
2.1.2 Financial Implications of IT Underinvestment
If available, I request any internal assessments of how IT underinvestment (staffing, system
performance, or infrastructure upgrades) has:
2.1.2.1 Increased system downtime and lost productivity for clinical and administrative staff.
2.1.2.2 Led to higher costs from reactive IT issue management instead of proactive system
improvements.
2.1.2.3 Affected patient care efficiency and clinical workflow, particularly in hospitals with
high patient throughput.”
Response
HealthAl iance ceased to exist when Health NZ came into existence on 1 July 2022. Your request
for the above information is refused in full under section 18(e) of the Act as this information does
not exist.
You may be interested to know that Health NZ is developing a Digital Investment Plan, which forms
part of the wider Health NZ long-term Infrastructure and Investment Plan, which was requested by
the Minister of Health. Please note that any decision to release information about the long-term
Infrastructure and Investment Plan wil be made by the Minister of Health in due course.
You may be interested in publicly available information about Health NZ Annual Reports and
quarterly reports on in the below links.
https:/ www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/publications/health-new-zealand-te-whatu-ora-annual-report-
purongo-a-tau-2023-2024
https:/ www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/publications/quarterly-performance-report-quarter-one-2024-25
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us at
[email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, Health NZ may proactively
release a copy of this response on our website. Al requester data, including your name and
contact details, wil be removed prior to release.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Danielle Coe
Manager (OIAs) – Government Services
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
TeWhatuOra.govt.nz
Health NZ, PO Box 793,
Wel ington 6140, New Zealand
