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 on 1st July 2004. It is one of the five Northland PHOs and is a shareholder of Northland PHOs Ltd.

Hokianga Health (or Hauora Hokianga) is a community owned and governed organisation (NGO) providing a wide range of comprehensive and integrated primary health services to the approximately 6,500 people who reside within an area defined by the geographic boundaries of the former Hokianga County Council. Most 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.

News

The Trust reluctantly agrees to relinquish the Hauora Hokianga Integrated PHO

31/7/10: Following a request from the Chairman of Northland DHB to the Chairs of the five Northland PHOs, the Trust has reluctantly agreed to support the plan that was subsequently submitted in response by Northland's PHO collective, NPHOs, which includes the reduction of the number of Northland PHOs and the wind up of the most integrated PHO in New Zealand. Although the agreement rides against principles of governance that are fundamental to the values of the Trust (e.g. Principle of Subsidiarity and Tino Rangatiratanga), the Trust has acknowledged that the Minister of Health will not support a future for the smaller, community governed Primary Health Organisations. In making this difficult decision, the Trust considered the unfortunate fact that holding on to the PHO would not serve the Hokianga community well because to resist change without support from the rest of the health sector would adversely affect future funding of accessible health care services for this relatively high needs, and rurally isolated community.
The Trust will join Te Tai Tokerau PHO by 31st December 2010. The Trust acknowledges the board of Te Tai Tokerau PHO for the warm invitation for the Trust to join their PHO. Along with our colleagues in Whangaroa and Kaikohe the Trust looks forward to discussions and plans for accommodating our localities into the new expanded role of Te Tai Tokerau PHO.
According to the NPHOs plan, Northland will be served by only two PHOs from 2011; Te Tai Tokerau and Manaia PHO.

The Trust releases 2010/2011 Annual Health and Business Plan

30/6/10: The Trust has released its Annual Health & Business Plan, which was approved by the Trust board on 29 June 2010. The plan can be downloaded for viewing on the Business Plan 2010 page.

Trust Re-opens Pou Kara Ariki Marae

1/4/10: The Trust completed the refurbishment of the hospital marae, Pou Kara Ariki. The original floors of the room have been restored and polished, exposing the subtle floor lighting used in its maternity ward days. The ambience provided by this and the installation of a historic stained glass window and other restored furniture, has complemented the redecoration and made the marae a very welcoming place. Appreciation for the new surroundings has been expressed by whanau and families using the facility to stay close to very sick and dying patients at the hospital.

Hokianga Hospital celebrates 100 Years on its current site

13/3/10: On 3 June 1909 Hokianga Hospital opened on its current site on the hill at the entrance to Rawene. Hokianga health services have been around for more than one hundred years but this seemed an opportune time to celebrate the successes and achievements of the past century. More than 300 people attended a powhiri,with whaikorero from kainga hau and manuhiri. A wero (challenge) was accepted by Mr Tony Norman, Chair of the Northland District Health Board. A commemorative plaque was blessed and later unveiled by Hon. John Carter, MP for Northland. A commemorative cake was cut by Ellen Reihana, the oldest resident born in Hokianga, and Vivian Kahi, longest serving staff member. A photo history book covering the events of the hundred years was also launched. Team games and a gala event in the afternoon was followed by a cabaret in the Rawene Town Hall. A church service was held on the Sunday.

Trust Chairman Hiku Cherrington Receives New Year's Honour

1/1/10: Hiku Cherrington was awarded the Queen's Service Medal in the New Year's honours for services to Maori and the community. Positions held by Mr Cherrington during the last 35 years include 30 years service as chairman of the Waimamaku Maori Committee, 15 years as chairman of the Opononi Area School Senior Maori Culture Committee, and 15 years as president of the South Hokianga Maori Executive.

Trust Commences Refurbishment of Pou Kara Ariki Marae

11/12/09: The Trust has commenced the long awaited refurbishment of the hospital marae, Pou Kara Ariki. The marae was opened in 1984 in the former maternity ward of Hokianga Hospital. It was used for a number of years as the local kohanga reo ('language nest'), which has the same name as the marae, Pou Kara Ariki. Today the marae facility is used by whanau and families to stay close to very sick and dying patients at the hospital, for welcoming new staff and visitors, and for special celebrations and occasions. The facility is temporarily closed for the renovations which are expected to be completed by mid-January 2010.

Annual General Meeting re-elects Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Treasury Committee

24/11/09: At the AGM today, the Trustees re-elected Hiku Cherrington as Chairman, Peter Oldham as Deputy Chairman, and Celia Pomare, Lis Bowker, Brenda Wallace and Peter Oldham as Treasury Committee members.

New Trustees for Omapere and Horeke Clinic Areas

24/11/09: The Trust confirmed today the election of Yvonne Sarich for Omapere and the appointment of Jennifer Rutene for Horeke clinic areas. The Trust expressed its thanks and appreciation for the work and commitment of retiring Trustee, Betty Pennel of Omapere. Betty was one of the founding members of the Trust.

Baby Friendly Hospital

19/11/09: Hokianga Hospital received accreditation from the New Zealand Breastfeeding Authority as a Baby Friendly Hospital. The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative is a world wide movement to encourage breastfeeding of newborn babies to give them the best start in life. Hokianga Hospital has an excellent record of high rates of breastfeeding mothers, both on discharge and at six weeks of age. All our staff are now trained to know the steps involved in breastfeeding and its importance, and are proud to receive this acknowledgement.

100 Year Celebrations

16/10/09: The Trust is currently planning for the centenary celebration of the Hokianga Hospital on its current site. The celebration will take place on 13th March 2010. Please refer to the 100 Year Celebration page for further information.

Annual Report 2009

1/10/09: The Annual Report 2009 has now been published and is available from the administration office at Hokianga Hospital. Please contact Stephanie (09) 4057 351, if you would like us to send you a copy. A pdf version can be downloaded on the Annual Report 2009 page.

Trust Announces Trustee Scholar 2009

30/9/09: Hamish McMillan, with family connections to Waimamaku, has been awarded the 2009 Trustees scholarship for students of allied health services. Hamish is currently studying physiotherapy at AUT, and the scholarship will assist with fees for the 2010 year. This scholarship is one of three offered by the Trust to assist students in their studies in medical, nursing or allied health fields. Eligibility criteria is a whakapapa link to Hokianga, or schooling in Hokianga, and involves an essay written about prescribed aspects of the Hokianga health services. Hamish will meet with the Trust to receive his scholarship in December 2009.

New GP joins the Trust

28/9/09: Dr Chris Todd who hails from Alaska, has joined the medical team at Hauora Hokianga. Chris has had extensive experience with the providing family health care in indigenous communitites and working at a small rural hospital in Alaska, and is a welcome addition to the team. Chris is accompanied by his partner Bonnie Sue and their daughter Sylvie.

Steve Taylor resigns from Trust

1/9/09: Kaumatua, Steve Taylor has resigned from the Trust today. Steve represented the Horeke community for four years. The Trust thanks Steve for his service to the Trust and his community and wishes him well for the future.

Influenza and Vaccines

30/4/09: If you feel you are coming down with the flu, rest at home and drink plenty of fluids. To control a fever, aches and pains - for adults take aspirin or paracetamol - children should avoid aspirin. Phone your nurse if symptoms get worse - these include increase in breathing problems, coughing up yellow or green phlegm, severe headaches or dehydration.
Always ring the hospital or clinic, if you are worried. Help is only a call away.

Flu vaccines are available at clinics and Health Centre. Please talk to your community health nurse to arrange a shot. The vaccines are free to people over the age of 65 and others with certain chronic health conditions, otherwise the cost is $20.

Please also keep an eye on any elderly neighbours or friends over the winter - just popping in to see if they are OK may make all the difference to them.

Hauora Hokianga Initiates Code Yellow Pandemic Plan

30/4/09: With the Ministry of Health in standby mode (Code Yellow), Hauora Hokianga has initiated the preparation phase of its Pandemic Plan. At this stage there is no cause for undue alarm. Hauora Hokianga is monitoring the situation very closely. The N1H1 flu virus (swine flu) is a sub category of the influenza A virus.
Keeping in mind that there can always be a lot of influenza like illness around at the onset of winter, please be particularly aware of any symptoms such as high fever, cough, and sore throat if you have been overseas or you have had any contact with someone returning from overseas.
Should you experience these symptoms, please do not come to the hospital or clinic, but ring and talk to the nurse over the phone first.
Hand washing and cough etiquette are still the most important measures to reduce the risks of transmitting infectious organisms from one person to another.
The best things you can do to stop the spread of any type of influenza virus is to:

• Stay at home and away from others if you are sick
• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue
• Put used tissues into a rubbish bin
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth - germs spread that way
• Be careful to wash hands often with soap and dry them thoroughly - hand hygiene is critical: even when you start to feel better there is still a risk of infecting others, so keep to the 20/20 rule - 20 seconds washing and 20 seconds drying
• Keep surfaces clean at home, school and work

Mangamuka Wins Top Clinic Team Competition

27/4/09: On a rainy day on the last Friday of the holidays, nine teams vied for the title of Top Clinic Team and the Sam Ruka Trophy at the Taheke Community Centre.
Mangamuka emerged as the winner, Panguru was in second place, and third was the Horeke Hot Shots. The winning team will host the next challenge in the July school holidays.

New Names for Two Hospital Facilities

1/4/09: At the monthly meeting yesterday, the Trust approved recommendations from staff and community for new names for two of its hospital facilities.

Te Whare Whakaaro Nui (the House of Wisdom) is the new name for the Long Stay Continuing Care Ward for elderly patients. This name was originally suggested by the late Chairman of the Trust, Joe Topia.

Te Whare Matauranga (the House of Knowledge) is the name for the new meeting room that was completed last year (formerly called Te Whare Wananga).

Dr Clare Ward Appointed as New Medical Director

16/3/09: Following the retirement of Dr Paul Bowker from the position, Dr Clare Ward has been appointed as the new Medical Director. Dr Bowker will be continuing his work as a GP with Hauora Hokianga.

Harmen Hielkema Appointed as New Facilities Manager

16/2/09: Harmen Hielkema of Waima has been appointed as the new Facilities Manager following the recent resignation of Hayden McGrath. Hayden served in the position for three years. The Trust thanks Hayden for his work with Hauora Hokianga and wishes him and his family all the best for the future.

Trust Announces Rae Cox Scholar 2008

27/1/09: Sonia Booth was awarded the Rae Cox scholaraship at the Trust meeting today.Sonia is now in her third year of study towards a Bachelor of Nursing at Otago Polytechnic. She is of Te Rarawa descent on her father's side, and was born and raised in Hokianga, attending Rawene Primary School. 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 Sonia the 2009 Scholarship

Hiku Cherrington elected as Chairman

25/11/08: Hiku Cherrington was elected today as Chairman at the Trust's Annual General Meeting held at Te Whare Wananga, Hokianga Hospital in Rawene. Peter Oldham who had held the position of Acting Chairman until the AGM was re-elected as the Deputy Chairman. Both the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman represent the Waimamaku clinic area. Peter Oldham, Lis Bowker, and Celia Pomare were re-elected to the Treasury Committee and Brenda Wallace was elected as the fourth member of the Committee.

New Trustees Appointed

10/10/08: Following the round of community meetings held throughout the Hokianga this week, four new Maori Trustees have been appointed to the Board. Amie Topia and Tuakana Green were selected by the Panguru community at their meeting held at the Panguru Development Centre on Monday this week. A meeting of 20 people paid acknowledgements to Kaumatua Joe Topia QSM and Rose Morunga, the former representatives of the Panguru area who had both passed away in recent months. Helene Leaf was elected by the Opononi community to represent the Trust. Tributes were expressed by the community for the work of Lindsay Gray, who stood down as the clinic area representative after many years on the Trust. Graham Higgins who had represented the community for about 6 months, voluntarily stood down at the meeting held at the Taheke Community Centre. Papu Ngawhau from Waima was elected to replace Graham. Thanks were expressed to Doreen Beer who had also put her name forward for selection.

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.

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.

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.