- Hon Matt Doocey
The rollout of delivering healthcare closer to home for six rural communities in Golden Bay, Tūrangi, Twizel, Te Kūiti, Coromandel and Great Barrier Island has been completed, marking the first phase of strengthening urgent and after-hours care across 70 rural locations, Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey announced today.
"Access to healthcare is one of the biggest concerns for people in rural and remote areas. Our Government is committed to ensuring New Zealanders can get the care they need, when they need it, no matter where they live," Mr Doocey says.
Budget 2025 invested $164 million to strengthen urgent and after-hours care nationwide, meaning 98 per cent of New Zealanders will be able to access these services within one hour's drive of their home.
Services were piloted in Twizel, Golden Bay, Tūrangi, Te Kūiti, Coromandel and Great Barrier Island, helping shape the design of rural health services for up to 70 locations.
"People in rural areas can often travel long distances for care and rely on small teams supporting large regions. Already, the first phase shows the difference locally led approaches can make, with faster care, better access to treatment, and stronger links between rural health services."
Across the six sites, several improvements have been implemented, including:
- Point-of-care blood testing is available at all locations, allowing clinicians to run key tests immediately without waiting for samples to be transported or sending people to hospital.
- Point-of-care ultrasound has been introduced across all sites, with sixteen rural clinicians trained to use the equipment, supporting faster decision-making and reducing hospital transfers.
- Improved access to after-hours medicines, with Tūrangi and Twizel now providing on-call pharmacy services through telehealth and local pharmacists.
- Expanded ambulance support, including 24/7 coverage in Twizel over the holiday period, with work underway with Hato Hone St John on long-term options for the Mackenzie District.
- Integrated rural urgent care workforce models, with Extended Care Paramedics now working within local teams in Golden Bay and Great Barrier Island, strengthening urgent care capacity and easing pressure on small practices.
"This year, an additional 30 rural locations will have their services strengthened. This will include expanding point-of-care testing and ultrasound, improving access to after-hours medicines, and scaling integrated paramedic support," Mr Doocey says.
"The results from the first six sites show what's possible when rural providers are supported to design solutions that work for their communities. The momentum from this first phase will help strengthen urgent and after-hours care for years to come."
This builds on work underway to strengthen the rural health workforce, including rural training hubs and the new medical school at the University of Waikato.
