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Te Whare Taumata o Ngā Hōhipere Taiwhenua

Rural Hospitals
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Te Whare Taumata o Ngā Hōhipere Taiwhenua is the highly valued leader of the rural hospital sector in Aotearoa. 

About Us

Rural Hospitals work closely with rural general practices, allied health, and other clinical and social support services to improve the health and wellbeing of the rural communities we live and work with. We also work closely with other rural hospitals, often sharing staffing, information, and systems that enhance the way we provide services. We bring an informed and united rural hospital perspective to Hauora Taiwhenua. Through Hauora Taiwhenua, we endeavour to influence government policy and the implementation of Government Health Reforms – particularly those that will enable us to contribute to equitable health outcomes for our rural communities.

For our Rural Hospitals Locum Service – click here

Below is a snapshot of the Rural Hospitals in Aotearoa New Zealand. You can click on each hospital to learn more about them and the services they provide.

 

About our Rural Hospitals

Kaikōura Health (Te Hā o Te Ora)

 

Hauora Hokianga

 

 

Dunstan Hospital

Executive Committee

Jen Thomas

Co-Chair

Robin Rutter-Baumann

Co-Chair

Dr Sarah Clarke

Clinical Director Rural Hospital Medicine Te Whatu Ora, Northern District

Bernice Marra

Michelle Smith

Debi Lawry

I have been a nurse for 47 years. It is a career that has been varied, challenging and utterly rewarding. I have worked in urban settings, and rural New Zealand. From tertiary/quaternary hospitals to remote rural hospitals, I have been privileged to work with nurses and other healthcare professionals who share my passion for providing quality healthcare. The past 15 years my focus has been rural New Zealand. My jobs included nursing leadership roles and latterly management roles.

I joined the Rural Hospital Network executive team, to provide a nursing voice in this national organisation. I learned that rural nurses belonged to various organisations – but these focussed on the nursing profession rather than the challenges of nursing in a rural environment. Some nurses participated in the Rural GP Network. This organisation provided leadership in the rural health space, but was strongly primary healthcare focussed at that time. So rural hospital nurses didn’t identify with the organisation.

Eventually an opportunity arose for a group of like minded rural nurses, to establish a network for all rural nurses to connect. It differs from other organisations in that it has non financial membership, it connects to rural nurses across New Zealand via it’s Facebook presence and its website. An executive has been established to champion projects and provide leadership. We have deliberately tried to include nurses throughout Aotearoa working in a variety of areas. Our aim is inclusion and to improve the profile and support of rural nurses.

I live in Central Otago so have strong links rurally throughout the lower South Island. However, through Rural Nurses NZ, I feel part of a larger whanau of rural healthcare professionals, particularly nurses, and these connections remind me constantly of all that rural people have in common. Together we have more chance to improve support for rural nurses and therefore improve the healthcare that is provided to our rural communities.

Pip Zammit

Karl Metzler

Paul Hopkins

Relevant news

Webinar: The Potential Role of Physician Associates in Rural

Watch an insightful webinar exploring the role that Physician Associates (PA's) could make as part of primary care teams in New Zealand's rural healthcare system. Shelly kicks off the session by discussing the Physician Associate role, including their training, registration process and professional responsibilities. Following this Scott and Karl share their experiences using Physician Associates in rural general practice and hospitals, highlighting contributions to improving healthcare delivery in their rural communities. Following the presentation, there is a Q&A session where attendees have their questions answered.

Webinar: Navigating Assisted Dying in Rural Communities

The EOLC Act 2019 is the legal framework for AD in New Zealand. On Nov 7 2021, AD became a part of the health and disability system. Hear from Michael Nestmann - Health New Zealand - Manager Autonomy Team, Living Well National Commissioning and Dr Jo Scott-Jones - Pinnacle Health - Clinical Director, and Rural GP

Rural Hospital Summit 2023 – What’s happened since then?

Te Whatu Ora leaders' presentation about their plans for a Rural Hospital Sustainability Project was well received but as far as we know, has not gained the traction we'd hoped for - most likely as the Hospital and Specialist services team are carrying a massive workload. However, this is no consolation for the NGO rural hospitals and rural general practices who provide medical services in their co-located Te Whatu Ora hospital. A letter from them to Margie Apa, asked her to urgently address the financial and clinical risks they face because their funding does not allow them to achieve pay parity for their clinical staff.