Rural Health Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand (RHAANZ) chief executive Michelle Thompson
Rural Health Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand (RHAANZ) chief executive Michelle Thompson
The endless gnawing away at services for rural communities has gone too far, a national rural leader says.
Rural Health Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand (RHAANZ) chief executive Michelle Thompson says equitable access to services for rural people is needed.
"We are losing our hospitals, our schools, we have under-funded healthservices, emergency services, midwives and airports. This must stop. There are well over 600,000 people living in rural New Zealand, the equivalent of easily being the country's second largest city. Agriculture and tourism are the powerhouses of the Kiwi economy.
"Rural New Zealand feeds our people three times a day with good protein, fresh fruit and vegetables. The link between good nutrition, good health — both physical and mental — and productivity is undisputed.
"So why is it, rural people constantly struggle to access the same level of services that city people enjoy?" Michelle says RHAANZ recently undertook a health workforce stocktake of members and the results clearly showed rural health services are under significant pressure.
"The services and systems in place are described as very fragile and in some cases one resignation away from collapse." She says maternity care is one example.
"Rural mums and midwives are fighting for maternity centres to stay open and this will soon reach crisis point if nothing is done to stop the contraction of midwifery access in rural communities." Michelle says rural New Zealand needs investment from the government.
"Hard-working rural Kiwis are punching well above their weight helping boost our economy but the erosion of services, such as hospitals, airports and midwifery centres, is appalling and has to stop so we can start solving the serious rural health crisis.
Big government spending is urgently needed to ensure equitable access to health services for rural New Zealanders, so rural people's health is considered just as important as those who live in cities."
