WELCOME

HOKIANGA HEALTH ENTERPRISE TRUST is a registered charitable trust formed in May 1992.

HAUORA HOKIANGA INTEGRATED PRIMARY HEALTH ORGANISATION was formed within the entity of the Trust in July 2004. It is one of the six Northland PHOs and is a shareholder of Northland PHOs Ltd.

Hokianga Health (or Hauora Hokianga) is a community organisation (NGO) providing a wide range of health services to the approximately 6,500 people who reside within an area defined by the geographic boundaries of the former Hokianga County Council. All of the services, including GP visits (for PHO members), are provided at no cost at the point of need.

Hokianga (map) is located on the west coast of the Far North district of New Zealand. The area is traditionally described in Maori society through the visual linking of the mountains that surround the Hokianga Harbour. Hokianga is rich in both Maori and European history and is considered by Maori to be the birthplace of the Maori nation. Kupe, the great pacific explorer, before returning to Hawaiiki, settled in the place that later was named, Hokianga nui a Kupe - the place of Kupe's great return.

News

Tributes Received for matua Joe Topia

22/7/08: The Northland Age:
Further tributes were also paid to Joe Topia, described by Maori Party co-leader, Tariana Turia as one of the key leaders of primary health care in Aotearoa.
'Our people in Whanganui are among the many iwi around the country who learned from Joe about meeting the health needs of our own communities,' she said.
'When I worked for Te Oranganui, before I came to Parliament, we visited Joe, and the late Chris Diamond, to learn the example set by the Hokianga Health Enterprise Trust which Joe had helped set up. This community resistance to the abolition of the Special Medcial Area in 1991 was at the forefront of what has become a powerful flax roots movement that is changing the face of health services in this country.'
'They were among the first to achieve what I would call rangatiratanga over health. They had control over their own pharmaceutical budget way back when, and that was so exciting at the time.'
'Joe went on to become chairman of Healthcare Aotearoa's Kaunihera Maori, an umbrella organisation that emerged from a collective of primary health services, which has enabled many iwi initiatives to develop from small beginnings into a powerful force.'

Trustee Chairman and Kaumatua Joe Topia QSM has passed away

15/7/08: Matua Joe Topia QSM passed away early on Tuesday afternoon at Rawene Hospital. We will miss our loved and highly respected leader for his wisdom, patience, and humour.
Moe mai, moe mai i te rangi marie e matua Hohepa.

Trustee Phyllis Bawden recognised with a QSM

3/6/08: Former District Nurse and long serving Trustee, Phyllis Bawden has been recognised on the Queens Birthday honours list with a Queens Service Medal. The Trust congratulates Phyllis for this acknowldgement of the years of service she has committed to improving the health and well-being of the people of the Hokianga. Phyllis is now the fourth trustee of Hokianga Health Enterprise Trust to be honoured with a QSM. She joins our distinguished list which includes the late Chris Diamond QSM, Lorraine Diamond QSM, Betty Pennell QSM, and the Trust Chairman, Joe Topia QSM.

Draft Annual Health and Business Plan 2008/2009

27/5/08: At the monthly meeting of the Trust today, trustees received the Draft Annual Health & Business Plan for 2008/2009. If you wish to read the plan, please go to the Business Plan 2008 page. The Trust welcomes feedback, comments, suggestions and recommendations which can be made on the contact us page. Please note that 20th June 2008 is the last day for comments before the plan will be tabled at the June Trust meeting for final approval.

Trustee Ron Dixon Resigned

27/5/08: Taheke representative Ron Dixon resigned from the Trust today. Trustees and the CEO thanked Ron for his service and enthusiastic support to the kaupapa of the Trust and his excellent governance and representation on behalf of the Taheke / Otaua / Waima communities.

Registered Nurse Vacancies on the Hospital Ward

20/5/08: This is a great opportunity for a registered nurse to join our hospital nursing team. Please refer to the Registered Nurses page for further information and contact details.

Maori Counselling Scholarships

19/5/08: Northland PHOS Ltd, through the Northland Primary Mental Health project, Te Pou Ora O Te Piringatahi, is offering four scholarships to the value of $5000 each which will be awarded each year to four Maori students who are studying towards a a degree or diploma in counselling. Candidates must be of maori descent, be studying at a Northland institution, studying fulltime, and must be normally resident in the Far North, mid-north and Whangarei areas of Northland. Please go to the Manaia PHO website for more information about the scholarships, and the Northland PHO website for more information about the Northland PHO Primary Mental Health project, Te Pou Ora O Te Piringatahi.

New Patient Management System and wide area network went live this weekend

5/5/08: Hauora Hokianga completed the installation of the MyPractice computer based Patient Management System (PMS) and wide area network this weekend.
The wide area network (WAN) will link the Health Centre and Hospital based in Rawene with eight of the nine outreach clinics operating throughout the Hokianga area. The Mangamuka Clinic, due to the unavailability of Broadband services is not able to be connected and will continue to utilise manual systems for updating its local database server.

New Community and Clinical Development Manager Appointed

31/3/08: Margareth Broodkoorn has been appointed to this new position within the senior management team of Hauora Hokianga. Margareth was formerly Acting General Manager of Te Ha o Te Ora, the health provider of Te Runanga o Ngati Whatua, based in Dargaville.

Trust Announces GM Smith Scholar 2008

31/3/08: Renus Stowers was awarded the GM Smith scholaraship 2008 at the Trust meeting in March. Renus is a fourth year medical student at the Auckland School of Medicine. This year, he is based in Whangarei and taking part in the new Northland rural programme, Te Pukawakawa. His grandfather is a Pehi from Waima and Taheke and his grandmother is a Te Hira from Panguru. Last year, he had a two week placement at Rawene Hospital as part of his 3rd year studies. Applications are received each year for the GM scholarship.

Steve Morunga appointed as Trustee for Rawene

26/2/08: Former staff member, Steve Morunga was appointed by the Trust at the recent monthly meeting to represent the Rawene community following the resignation of trustee elect, Jim Rouse.

Kohukohu Clinic Day Changed to Tuesdays

22/2/08: From 4th March, the Kohukohu Clinic day will operate on Tuesdays, changing from Thursdays. This change is to accommodate GP Registrars who are now holding their study day on Thursdays.

New Generator Installed This Week

21/2/08: Hokianga Hospital is installing its new generator this week. The old generator is now over 50 years old and it did not perform as well as we would have liked during the two Northland floods last year. The new generator will give the hospital more "oomph" during a power outage, has improved fuel efficiency, and has faster and more reliable switching.

New Hospital Services Manager Appointed

21/2/08: Christine Dorsey has been appointed as the new Hospital Services Manager. Christine has been the acting manager of the hospital services since December and has a wealth of experience and expertise in hospital nursing.

Trust Announces Rae Cox Scholar 2008

1/1/08: Sherryn Aslani was awarded the Rae Cox scholaraship at the Trust meeting in December. Sherryn is a year two nursing student at Unitec, Auckland. She is of Ngapuhi, Te Rarawa, and Te Aupouri descent and is related to the Dunn family of Pakanae and Whirinaki. Her essay on the history and development of nursing services in the Hokianga and its relevance to modern day practice and the social environment won Sherryn the 2008 Scholarship. The scholarship pays $2,500 for each of two years to cover tuition fees and other study costs. Applications are received each year for scholarships from 1st or 2nd year nursing students.