A health center in Koné to improve healthcare provision in the North

The health sector is a major issue for the territory’s development, and particularly in terms of improving living conditions for the population. Indeed, New Caledonia’s indicators for life expectancy, medical density and hospital facilities are lower than the averages in mainland France. Its health facilities are dilapidated and saturated, while demographic factors (growth and ageing of the population, development of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer) put the healthcare system under greater pressure.

The construction of the Koné Health Center (PSK) is the third large-scale project launched by New Caledonia to restructure healthcare provision, following the construction of the Médipôle health center and the grouping together of private clinics in Nouméa on a single site, which is under construction.

The program comprises the construction of a local hospital site with 58 beds and 5 outpatient places. This will increase CHN’s total capacity to 150 beds (65 more than at present). The center will provide:

• A comprehensive medical-technical platform, with an emergency unit equipped with mobile emergency and intensive care services (SMUR);
• Diversified local healthcare services;
• And the Koné Medical-Social Center site will also have a health and social agency (ASS) and specialized hospital unit (CHS), as well as a hemodialysis unit.

The project brings together several partners: New Caledonia, the contracting authority which is financing the bulk of the project via the Health and Social Agency, the State, under development contracts, the North Hospital Center (CHN), which will operate the hospital, the North province, and the Specialized Hospital Center. AFD is operating alongside Caisse des Dépôts to finance the respective shares of the ASS and CHN in the project. The delivery of the Koné health center is scheduled for October 2017, with a commissioning in 2018.

• Healthcare provision rebalanced between the provinces and local patient care revitalized in the North of the territory;
• Support for the development of the Voh-Koné-Pouembout area, which is driven by the realization of the North plant;
• Healthcare provision streamlined and improved, in particular by pooling resources and medical skills between the Nouméa facilities and CHN.