Work has begun on the first stage of a new $60 million hospital in Greymouth, on the West Coast.
An $8 million Integrated Family Health Centre is to be built in Buller.
West Coast District Health Board staff have started meeting architects and health planners to develop a plan for the facilities.
The board's chief executive, David Meates, says over the next six weeks staff workshops will take place in Buller and Greymouth.
He says this is a chance for staff to put their clinical and operational expertise into the initial plans.
The new facilities are expected to be ready by the end of 2016.
