Northland to get fourth Rural Training Hub

Northland will soon have a Rural Training Hub to help grow the rural health workforce and improve access to healthcare for communities across the region, Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey announced today.

One in five New Zealanders live in rural communities, and they should not be disadvantaged when it comes to accessing timely, quality healthcare, Mr Doocey says.

The Government is focused on fixing the basics and building the future by training more health professionals closer to the communities they will serve.

Rural communities know that when you train people locally, they’re far more likely to stay local. That’s exactly what these hubs are designed to do.

The Northland hub is the fourth Rural Training Hub to be rolled out nationally, following South Taranaki, Wairoa and the West Coast, which was announced earlier this year.

The hub will support education and training across primary, community and hospital services, helping to build a rural health workforce that reflects the needs of local communities.

It will support students into clinical placements, create stronger training pathways and provide pastoral support to help attract and retain frontline health workers across Northland.

We know communities understand what works best for them. That’s why the hub will better align workforce planning with communities’ needs.

It will also give more people exposure to rural health careers and strengthen the pathway between undergraduate and postgraduate rural training.

This is a practical step towards strengthening rural health services and ensuring communities across New Zealand can access the care they need, closer to home.