New Job. New Lifestyle. New Zealand 2021.
If you’re thinking about your next career move, you won’t find a more unique location. An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Specialist in Public Health Medicine (Population Health) to be based in Gisborne in the beautiful Tairāwhiti region of the North Island, working in the Te Puna Waiora team.
The city of Gisborne is small (regional population 49,100 with 75% living in the city), but for those who love the outdoors, good clean air and a pristine natural environment, you won’t find a better location to enjoy the relaxed NZ lifestyle.
- Enjoy coastal living and sun-drenched beaches
- Bring fresh ideas, as well as your adaptable and agile approach
- Become part of the community that you are directly impacting
- Fixed term for 24 months, commence 2021
- Hold specialist qualifications which meet the MCNZ Locum Tenens eligibility criteria (see below)
- Experience of working in public health, health promotion and community development initiatives
- Beautiful natural surroundings and marine life – white sandy beaches, native forest & birds, dolphins and orcas
The Organisation
This role is based in Te Puna Waiora (TPW), the Planning, Funding and Population Health division of Tairāwhiti District Health Board (Hauora Tairāwhiti) in Gisborne.
Hauora Tairāwhiti is committed to the needs of Māori who make up 65% of admissions to the hospital and form 46.2% of the region’s total population. There is also an active focus on Māori Health issues and respecting culture and customs with regards to patient care.
“We uphold Whānau [family] centred practice, enjoy each other and our skills, see ourselves as part of a larger response to and with our community, and genuinely want health and wellbeing for our community. We celebrate that we are part of a very diverse community. Our significant Māori population means we are part of unique indigenous solutions. We have a distinctive mix of urban and rural environments which provide rich and complex opportunities for engagement at all levels of our community. Most importantly we love what we do.”
The Role
This is an exciting and challenging role in a unique setting. Patients in Tairāwhiti are chronically underserved and this presents a fantastic opportunity to make a real difference in this community while enjoying an excellent work life balance.
Using your skills and experience in Public Health Medicine, you will provide advice internally within the organisation, as well as externally to general practitioners and other primary health care practitioners, relevant government agencies, and the public. You will participate in the development and implementation of service quality assurance activities for Hauora Tairāwhiti.
COVID-19 across New Zealand will continue to be a core piece of work over the next 18 months.
For this role, you will have well-rounded clinical expertise in Public Health Medicine and Population Health. This may have been gained within New Zealand or internationally. You will have an excellent working knowledge of the impacts of broader determinants of health, the Treaty of Waitangi and the Ottawa Charter. Experience of working in partnership with indigenous populations would be beneficial.
You will have strong leadership and influencing skills, combined with an innovative and agile approach. You will be comfortable working in a multicultural environment with a diverse range of people and situations. You will have the ability to build good rapport and develop successful relationships across organisational boundaries with strategic partners; and you will also have the ability to work effectively as part of a wider health and social care whole system which includes Whānau/families, health service users and all the organisations working towards hauora/wellbeing for Tairāwhiti.
What’s on offer?
- Total package ranges NZ$190,000 - $300,000 per annum, depending on level of experience
- This includes: Base salary from NZ$164,369 to $244,560 pa, depending on level of experience; Continuing Medical Education Allowance NZ$16,000 + 10 days CME leave pa.
- Plus relocation assistance
The Location
Gisborne features a prevalent café culture and restaurants which serve locally sourced fresh produce and award-winning wines from local boutique vineyards. Local schools are excellent and real estate is affordably priced – there is something ideal to suit your needs from apartments, townhouses, something more rural (lifestyle block) or close to Wainui Beach. Gisborne enjoys warm summers (up to low-30s, degree celsius) and mild winters and is considered one of the sunniest places in New Zealand. It is also the first place to see the sunrise every morning.
Locals enjoy easy access to a fantastic untouched natural environment, which lends itself to such outdoor pastimes as surfing, horse riding, paddle boarding, fishing, sailing, ocean swimming, mountain biking and hill walking etc. It’s also a popular holiday destination for other visiting Kiwis in the summertime, drawn to the hot summer weather; annual music, food and wine festivals; vineyard tours; and surfing competitions.
The local airport has regular daily flights to Auckland and Wellington airports (1 hr flights), making international connections easy, as well as making other regional NZ destinations such as Queenstown and the Bay of Islands easily accessible.
Additionally, you’re only a few hours drive from stunning Tauranga city and surrounding beaches in the Bay of Plenty, and the beautiful Hawke’s Bay wine region.
Find out more about Gisborne and the Tairawhiti region here.
Requirements for this role
You will hold Fellowship of the NZ College of Public Health Medicine (FNZCPHM) or Fellowship of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FAFPHM) and full Vocational registration with the Medical Council of NZ (MCNZ).
Alternatively, if not NZ-trained, you must hold equivalent specialist qualifications in Public Health Medicine that will enable Provisional Vocational (long term) registration or Locum Tenens (short term up to 12 months) registration with MCNZ.
This means having completed your specialist training in one of the following resulting in the following qualifications:
- Australia (FAFPHM)
- Canada (Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in Public Health Medicine)
- Ireland (Fellowship of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians (Ireland) via CCT), or
- the UK (Fellowship of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians (London) via CCT)
Locum Tenens and Provisional Vocational registration are the two pathways to medical registration in NZ for Public Health Medicine Specialists and we can assist with your medical registration and visa, if successfully appointed.
Please note, a Doctor’s relevant qualifications must be verified by ECFMG using the EPIC system on behalf of the Medical Council of New Zealand. If you are committed to working in New Zealand, we encourage you to start this process off as soon as possible if you hold qualifications from outside NZ. You may to log on to EPIC and complete this step online. EPIC verifies your identity and your qualifications directly with you. Log on to EPIC here and read the FAQs section about how to get started.
Photo credit: tairawhitigisborne.co.nz - Wainui Sunrise, Damon Meade