For the past three decades, Kāwhia’s medical needs have been serviced by Dr John Burton and wife Sue, a qualified medical lab technician. Credit: Brianna Stewart, King Country News

Today Health Minister Andrew Little announced the first nine locality network pilots to improve how healthcare is delivered in local communities. We’re excited to share that Taupō/Tūrangi and Hauraki have been selected in this pilot phase.

The Pinnacle rural committee is seeking rural GP representatives.

The summertime locum grant was established to help ease the pressure some rural practices face during the peak holiday season such as an influx of patients and the increased costs in attracting and accommodating locums during these peak periods.

Pat Bodger, Te Atiawa, Taranaki, Ngati Mutanga, Ngāruahine, Ngati Ruanui, has a straightforward approach to rural community nursing: you just get it done.

A proposed education clinic for tamariki with eczema and dermititis has received the 2021 Pinnacle Medical Scholarship, including $10,000 in funding to support the initiative.

RuralFest identifies key changes needed to improve health and wellbeing in rural communities, and takes those messages to Parliament. Dr Robin Baird, Te Kauwhata GP and Dr Jo Scott-Jones, GP and medical director report back on the 2021 event.

Every fortnight inside a whare at Parihaka Papakāinga in Taranaki, people can be found laughing and catching up with whānau in the Whakaihu Taiora clinic waiting room. They’re there because of a new health initiative designed to respond to community need.

A team-focused culture and forward-thinking approach at Whangamata Medical Centre in the Coromandel makes the busy rural practice a stand-out for locals and locums alike.

Point of care ultrasound (POCUS) was rolled out to 29 rural GP practices across the Pinnacle network in September, with overwhelmingly positive feedback from clinicians.