National PRIME Committee

Whakatāne marked the thirteenth and final stop on Minister Matt Doocey’s Rural Health Roadshow, co-hosted by Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network. The nationwide series has brought together rural communities, clinicians, and advocates to share local experiences and help shape the Government’s approach to rural health and wellbeing. Minister Doocey attended a public meeting in Whakatāne to hear directly from the community and frontline health professionals.

While national discussions about healthcare often focus on workforce shortages and burnout, the December 2024 New Zealand Women in Medicine (NZWIM) Workforce Survey provides a more nuanced picture — balancing challenges with purpose, and pressures with hope. The survey, the third of its kind produced by NZWIM, captured the experiences of women and gender-diverse doctors across Aotearoa. Hauora Taiwhenua spoke with Dr Orna McGinn, Chair of NZWIM and a rural GP at Ostend Medical Centre on Waiheke Island, about what the findings reveal — particularly through a rural lens. Hauora Taiwhenua spoke with Dr Orna McGinn, Chair of NZWIM and a rural GP at Ostend Medical Centre on Waiheke Island, about what the findings reveal — particularly through a rural lens.

Years of advocacy by Hauora Taiwhenua is rewarded with success in the announcement of the establishment of interprofessional rural training hubs across New Zealand. Our members see these as being a key pathway to encourage the growth of rural health professionals in rural areas and retention of existing health workers. This belief is based on strong international and New Zealand research showing that if you train rural people in rural settings, they are six times more likely to return to work in those rural areas.