What is Whānau Ora?

Whānau Ora is a family centred approach that recognises that the best solutions to ānau challenges come from Pacific ānau themselves. Pacific families are supported to achieve their goals in health, education, economic development and culture.

What is the aim of Whānau Ora?

The aim of Whānau Ora is to support your ānau to become stronger in terms of their health, education, wealth and culture.

How will it do this?

Your ānau will be supported by a navigator who will work with your ānau to achieve their goals. A navigator is a type of case worker who will be able to work in close cooperation and partnership with your ānau, supporting you and your family to meet your aspirations.

Immunisations are one of the most important services they provide. Immunisations will keep your family well. 

The National Immunisation Schedule offers a series of vaccines free to babies, children, adolescents and adults. Visit the Ministry of Health website to find out what vaccines are on the Schedule and when they are given.  Additional vaccines are provided free for certain eligible groups considered to be at high risk because of other medical conditions; find out more here. These and other vaccines such as travel vaccines can be purchased by other people if they want them.

Immunisations are given by a nurse, having ensured beforehand that the person is not ill or suffering from allergies. Risks associated with immunisation are very rare.

Children have their own document to keep a record of these injections. Under the age of 5 this is usually their Well Child/Tamariki Ora My Health Book. The immunisation record may need to be shown, for example, when starting school or early childcare. The staff will also record the immunisation details on New Zealand’s National Immunisation Register. This computerised information system holds details of all immunisations given to children here and will alert families when immunisations are due.

• Pfizer vaccine (12+ years)

• Child Pfizer vaccine (5-11 years)

• Eligible GP enrolled patients only

• Make an appointment

Covid-19 Vaccinations are available between 9:30am - 4pm on Monday to Friday. Please phone the practice to make an appointment or book online via your Manage My Health portal. 

Getting a COVID-19 vaccine is an important step you can take to protect yourself, your pā metua and ānau from the effects of the virus. For more information on the COVID-19 vaccines and eligibility visit Ministry of Health - COVID-19 vaccines

The majority of routine vaccinations can now be administered before, after, or at the same time as your COVID-19 vaccinations. The exception to this is the Zostavax (shingles) vaccine where a 7-day gap before or after receiving the Pfizer COVID-19 is advised. If you have any questions, please discuss with your healthcare provider.

All women who have ever been sexually active should have regular cervical smear tests every three years between the ages of 25 and 69. This includes women who have been immunised against HPV. This test detects abnormal cells which, if left untreated, could become cervical cancer. Very often these cells are made abnormal by a human papillomavirus (HPV) which is a sexually transmitted virus. Regular tests and treatment reduces the likelihood of this sort of cancer by around 90%. 
For more information about cervical smear tests click on the link to the National Screening Unit website.

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a recording of your heart's electrical activity. Electrode patches are attached to your skin to measure the electrical impulses given off by your heart. It can give information of previous heart attacks or problems with the heart rhythm.

Liquid nitrogen is a fast, effective treatment provided in many practices to treat viral warts, sun damaged skin, skin tags and many benign cosmetic lesions. It comes in a container with a nozzle and is usually applied by swab or spray. Often one treatment is all that is needed but sometimes it may need repeating after two weeks.

Because it cannot be stored for too long, you will often find that your GP will treat a number of patients one after the other.

For more information click here.

Minor surgery provide fast, competent removal and biopsies of skin lesions. Other services include cosmetic work such as removal of benign moles and skin tags. Ingrown toenail surgery is also commonly provided. 

These conditions do not need to be referred to a hospital, perhaps saving you a long wait or a cancelled appointment when a more serious case takes priority. 

If your doctor is unable to provide the procedure you need, he/she may know a neighbouring GP who does.

A patient portal is a secure online tool that can allow convenient access to your health information as well as interaction with the practice e.g. booking appointments and requesting repeat prescriptions.

Easy booking: https://myindici.co.nz/Account/Login

Patients who are well-known to the practice who have a stable condition like asthma, hypertension or diabetes could be allowed to get a repeat prescription for up to six months.

Spirometry is a tool that measures how effectively your lungs are working. It is able to show how much air lungs are able to hold (their volume) and how much air can be breathed in and out (inhaled and exhaled) which is called flow. This tool is used to assess damage caused by conditions like COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – a group that includes bronchitis and emphysema), pulmonary fibrosis, cystic fibrosis and asthma. Results are shown on a graph called a pneumotachograph.

Sometimes your doctor needs to take a sample of blood or urine either to discover what is wrong with you or to measure something in your blood so that the right medication is given to you. These tests could be anything from blood sugar to a full blood count or a sample of tissue to test for cancer.

While urine can generally be tested in the surgery, blood and other specimens are usually performed at a laboratory. Most results come back within 48 hours unless a very rare test is needed which has to go to a specialist lab further away when it might take a little longer.

We will contact you if you have abnormal results. If your results are normal, but you would like to discuss please contact us on 09 276 8640 and a nurse or doctor will return your call.

We provide mental health and well-being services through our Mou Maru team.