Voices rang through the Wikitoria Katene Health Building at Whitireia Polytechnic’s Porirua campus in March to celebrate the official opening of their brand new facility. KATE BARKER was on hand to cover the festivities.
Held on 20 March, the Whitireia Performing Arts students welcomed guests in with their waiata.
The day marked a memorable occasion for the polytech, which has come a long way from the pre-fabricated buildings which the School of Nursing and other health programmes have operated out of at some time over the past 27 years.
The building itself took just over a year to build, covers 3817 square metres, and cost Whitireia $17.1 million – all spent using the polytech’s reserve money.
Of that total, around $2m was spent on technology alone, ensuring the students have access to the tools they need to learn, such as wi-fi throughout the building and smart boards in the classrooms.
Health students at Whitireia can now also enjoy open plan tutoring areas, breakout spaces, a special ‘learning street’ or student hub, and full accessibility.
Sustainable and environmental construction methods were also a big focus during the build, with solar hot water and rain harvesting included, as well as taking advantage of natural light and the ability to naturally vent most of the classrooms.
During the colder months, the double glazed windows, insulated roofing and floating floor slabs with in-floor heating will be appreciated.
It is the biggest building in the polytech’s history, and incorporates the health, education and social sciences building opened in 2008.
Health Minister Tony Ryall was on-hand to officially open the building, and said this kind of facility was necessary to help boost a much-needed workforce.
“We’ve got growing and ageing populations, so we need to keep investing in our health workforce.”
Included in the new building is a simulation suite, where students can practice taking blood pressure and other procedures on $30,000 advanced life support mannequins.
Mr Ryall said investing in equipment like this would put the students in good stead when facing similar procedures in the workplace.
“By practicing these skills in a safe environment, students can become more confident and make the most of their time on placement.”
At the opening, Whitireia Chief Executive Don Campbell said this building represented an important step in their journey towards becoming a national centre for health teaching.
“Now the staff have a building that can match the levels of their programmes.
“The students and teachers have said they enjoy the fact that it’s open, light and airy.”
