The wife of a terminally ill Southland man says she is confident a regional charity hospital will be set up.
Melissa and Blair Vining. Photo: RNZ/ Karen Brown
Melissa Vining and her husband Blair have been campaigning for better cancer care since Mr Vining was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer nearly a year ago.
At a meeting in Invercargill last night, support for a charity hospital in Southland - similar to one in Christchurch - was canvassed from local medical professionals and businesses.
Mrs Vining said the response was encouraging.
"The key things that make me think it can move forward, definitively, is we've had a number of people with the right credentials offer to govern on the board.
"We've also had huge, huge support from medical professionals such as nurses and surgeons offering their help immediately."
She said they've had a lot of great suggestions around how funding could be achieved along with early indications from funders.
The tentative budget to get the project off the ground is $1.5 million which includes property and equipment.
Mrs Vining said there would be no DHB involvement at all.
"That's one of the key principals of the charity hospital, that it will be solely relying on community funds."
