Pātiki and Waharua Kōpito patterns
Over 500 first year house officers started in roles across our hospitals in January following six years of study and are ready to make a difference in our communities.
All 543 graduates have been placed in roles following a national graduate matching process with the outcome welcomed by both Health New Zealand |Te Whatu Ora and the NZ Medical Students Association (NZMSA).
Advanced Choice of Employment (ACE), an electronic national matching process, was used to place medical graduates in roles across New Zealand. Applicants fall into one of three categories - New Zealand citizen residents who are graduates from Aotearoa, New Zealand citizen residents who are graduates from Australia, and international graduates who studied in New Zealand.
The ACE matching process prioritises New Zealand graduates, taking into account their location preferences and overall application numbers. Graduates who are ‘unmatched’ are put into a talent pool to be contacted for graduate opportunities that become available following the match.
“This year we made enough positions available to allow applicants in all three categories to be offered places in the first round. No-one went into the talent pool, which hasn’t happened in previous years,” said John Snook, Director Workforce Planning and Development, Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora.
“This is a positive step to growing our medical workforce and meeting the health needs of New Zealanders.
“We’re incredibly pleased with this year’s outcome,” said Indira Fernando, President of NZMSA.
“We look forward to working with Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora to embed these changes long term. Every doctor trained in Aotearoa deserves an opportunity to practice here and serve our communities.”
“We’re fortunate to have a number of talented individuals who have chosen New Zealand to pursue their studies and make their home. We will continue to do what we can to support and retain them once they graduate.”
ENDS