Far North dentist and physio shortage means health professionals ‘can’t meet the needs of the area’

Changing Views Physiotherapy owner Alex Brandes said high rents and interest rates were making physios think twice about moving to Northland.

An escalating shortage of essential health services such as dentists, hygienists and physiotherapists in the Far North has health professionals worried they can’t provide the treatment patients desperately need.

One dental practice manager said the situation was so bad in Kerikeri, she regularly cops abuse from callers who can’t understand why they can’t be seen for months.

Bay Physio director and manipulative physiotherapist Robin Holland said a physio shortage had been a problem in the area for 20 years, which had “escalated for the last three or four, particularly with the pandemic”.

The problem was twofold, Holland said; the industry wasn’t training enough New Zealanders, and they weren’t being encouraged to go into rural areas.

Furthermore, the average career pathway duration was under 10 years because of a lack of funding within the profession’s infrastructure.

“It’s always been a significant problem in Northland,” Holland said. “It’s harder to attract people out of the cities, so we have to spend more time making the jobs more appealing.

“There’s a historical shortage here.

“The knock-on effect is we aren’t able to meet the needs of the local area.”

The issue was “costing the country money”, as people with injuries were not getting appropriate rehabilitation post-surgery, which increased the likelihood of them being off work longer, Holland said.

Holland, who has been advertising for a physio for the last six weeks, said it generally takes six to 12 months to find staff.

Increasingly, immigrants were moving north to fill jobs, he said, particularly since the Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand made the application for physio registration from Commonwealth countries simpler.

Bay Physio director and manipulative physiotherapist Robin Holland said the historic physio shortage in the Bay of Islands had escalated since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We’re seeing a few more physios coming from those countries.

“It has changed a bit for the better; we’re getting a lot of applicants from Pakistan and India.

“There is some movement, but it’s still tricky.”

Changing Views Physiotherapy owner Alex Brandes said high rents and interest rates were also making health professionals think twice about moving to Northland.

“It’s definitely difficult to get a young family-type of physio up here.

“People are not moving up because if you’re a single physio, you can’t afford a mortgage and the rents are more than half your wage.

“You also need a car to get around.

“You need to be either retiring or from here.”

Brandes, a musculoskeletal, sport and exercise physiotherapist, put a sign outside his Kerikeri Rd business advertising for a physio six months ago and hasn’t had a single response.

“To get someone up here, you have to provide incentives like cash.

“Most people [who] move into physiotherapy are looking for an opportunity.

“If you’re looking at an opportunity as a young family, there isn’t one because you can’t afford to live here.”

While hygienists have been in demand in Kerikeri for the last couple of years, the recent closure of an entire dental practice has put pressure on other dentists who are already at capacity.

One Kerikeri dental practice manager, who didn’t want to be named, said dentist and hygienist shortages had been “building since Covid”.

“Everyone came out the other end with broken teeth and missed exams and started to make appointments, and it’s got worse over the last couple of years.

“It’s painful for the patients, but it’s uncomfortable for us to be in a position to not [be able to] offer what they need in a timely manner.

“I used to be able to get people in within a week or two - now it’s months.

“I often get told I’m being ridiculous. They say, ‘That’s not offering a service’, but we’re doing the best we can.”

The practice manager said the problem has been exacerbated since the recent closure of Redwood Dental on SH10, reducing the number of dental practices in the growing town to three.

“It’s indescribable now how choked up it makes us. That’s a whole practice full of patients trying to get seen … yet the population is still growing.

“We haven’t had a hygienist for six months, it’s [nearly] impossible to get one.

“At the end of the day it ... has long-term health impacts, because our oral health has a direct impact on other [bodily] systems.”

The cost of living, healthcare and education are the top concerns facing Kiwis in 2023, according to new research by OneChoice NZ.

The Kiwi Concerns Report 2023 says 93 per cent of Kiwis have reduced their spending on health-related products, and 63 per cent are doubting whether there is sufficient infrastructure for health services such as hospitals and aged care.

Jenny Ling is a news reporter and features writer for the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering health, food, lifestyle, business and animal welfare issues.