About us:
e pā ana ki a matou
- Canterbury
- Chatham Islands
- Mid Canterbury
- South Canterbury
- West Coast
- Information Systems
- Public Health
- Te Pae Māhutonga
Careers at CPH
Want to work for an organisation committed to providing the best public health services possible?
Public Health: improving people’s health at the community and population level
Public health seeks to improve the health of communities and populations (or sections of the community) and reduce inequalities in health status. The Ottawa Charter approach is used in New Zealand for planning public health strategies. This framework recognises that to improve the health of populations and individuals, there is a need to address the determinants of health – rather than just providing health services.
- Find out about the Ottawa Charter approach to public health [78KB PDF].
- Find out about the Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion in a Globalised World [68KB PDF].
If people are to be responsible for the health of their families and themselves, they need:
- protection from environmental factors that could lead to health risks;
- adequate housing;
- a liveable income;
- employment;
- educational opportunities;
- a sense of belonging and being valued; and
- a sense of control over life circumstances.
Community and Public Health is part of the new National Public Health Service
The New Zealand health system transition began on 1st July 2022.
Community and Public Health | Te Mana Ora is part of the new National Public Health Service within Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora.
The National Public Health Service released a change proposal to staff on 27th November 2024 as part of Health NZ’s cost reduction programme to get back to budget. Staff are currently providing feedback and a final decision document on this change proposal is expected in early 2025.
Our staff will continue to provide the same services until further notice.
The Public Health Nursing Service is set to join the National Public Health Service from 10th February 2025.
Health NZ vs the Ministry of Health: What’s the difference?
Wondered what the difference is between Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora and the Ministry of Health – Manatū Hauora?
Imagine New Zealand’s health system is like a big team working to keep everyone healthy. Health NZ and the Ministry of Health are like coaches with different jobs!
Health NZ is like the coach who’s right there on the field, making sure the players (hospitals, doctors, nurses) are doing their best in the game (taking care of patients). They’ve brought all the local teams (district health boards) together into one national super team, so everyone plays by the same rules and supports each other. The super team aims for better health for all, including those who need extra help (like rural, Māori, Pacific, and disabled communities).
The Ministry of Health is like the head coach who plans the team’s strategy. They’re not on the field, but they’re making the big decisions, setting goals (health policies), and checking the scoreboard (healthcare quality) to help the team improve. They’re the ones who make sure the team is headed in the right direction.
How Community and Public Health applies the Ottawa Charter
As part of Community and Public Health’s overall population approach to the protection of people’s health and the prevention of avoidable illnesses, staff take a close interest in the social environments, settings where people live, work, and travel within the our region. This includes what kind of conditions need to be in place to enable people to reduce risks and live in a way which is healthier.
This approach gives a public health perspective to local and regional planning regarding developing, progressing and monitoring social and physical environments. Key considerations are the public health impacts of these social environments, with special emphasis on identified high needs groups. Central to this work is networking and working collaboratively with identified organisations. Promoting and optimising healthy outcomes for the public is central in all decision making.
The key ways that Te Mana Ora | Community and Public Health achieves results includes:
- building healthy public policies;
- creating supportive environments;
- strengthening community action;
- developing personal skills; and
- reorienting services towards health gain.
Examples of population programmes delivered to individuals include supporting immunisation to keep groups of people healthy, screening people to identify early stage disease to enable more effective treatment, and smoking cessation programmes.
Launch of Pae Ora, Healthy Futures Strategies
Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health published the Government’s Pae Ora Healthy Futures Strategies in July 2023. The strategies follow extensive consultation and set the direction for how all New Zealanders, whānau and communities can be well and live longer in good health.
New Zealanders told us they want to be able to get to and experience quality health services, no matter who or where they are. It is not enough to deliver good outcomes for some groups of people while others are left behind. Our health system must focus on fairness and improved health and wellbeing for all of us. We must also use our resources wisely and effectively to achieve the best outcomes possible.
The Pae Ora Strategies set out our health service priorities and system improvements over the next 5 to 10 years. This mahi was done with Te Aka Whai Ora, Te Whatu Ora, Ministry for Ethnic Communities, and Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People.
The six strategies are:
- The New Zealand Health Strategy;
- Pae Tū: Hauora Māori Strategy;
- Te Mana Ola: The Pacific Health Strategy;
- The Health of Disabled People Strategy;
- The Rural Health Strategy; and
- The Women’s Health Strategy.
This is the first time Pacific people, rural communities and women have had their own health strategies.
The New Zealand Health Strategy, the Health of Disabled People Strategy and the Hauora Māori Strategy have been updated following community engagement.
Public Health Career Opportunities
A range of skills and expertise is needed to achieve Community and Public Health’s objectives and goals in the communities we serve.
Core Public Health Functions for New Zealand
This report describes the public health principles and the core public health functions. These are combined in various ways by a range of providers to produce the public health services essential for a highly-functioning New Zealand health system.
The report also outlines the implications of this core functions model for public health service delivery.
Documents
- Health Delivery Plan (Health NZ 2025).
- Health and Independence Report 2023 (Ministry of Health 2024).
- Government Policy Statement on Health 2024-27 (Health NZ).
- Aoteaora New Zealand Health Status Report (Health New Zealand 2024).
- Te Pae Tata: Interim New Zealand Health Plan 2022 (Te Whatu Ora 2022).
- Developing the future Ministry of Health: Our strategy and strategic intentions 2022 to 2026 (Ministry of Health 2022).
- He Kaupapa Waka (Ministry of Health 2022).
- Interim Government Policy Statement on Health 2022-2024 (Ministry of Health 2022).
- The cost of long-term conditions in New Zealand: Review of the evidence (Ministry of Health 2022).
- Aotearoa New Zealand Public Perceptions of the Use of Personal Health Information (Ministry of Health 2022).
- Longer, Healthier Lives: New Zealand’s Health 1990–2017 (Ministry of Health 2020).
- Achieving Equity in Health Outcomes: Summary of a discovery process (Ministry of Health 2019).
- Achieving Equity in Health Outcomes: Highlights of selected papers (Ministry of Health 2018).
- The New Zealand Health Strategy 2016 (Ministry of Health).
- Annual Update of Key Results 2015/16: New Zealand Health Survey (Ministry of Health 2016).
- Social determinants approaches to public health: from concept to practice (World Health Organisation 2011).
- Closing the gap in a generation: Health equity through action on the social determinants of health (World Health Organisation 2008).
- Tracking Disparity: Trends in ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities in mortality, 1981 – 2004 (Ministry of Health 2007).
- Achieving Health for All People (Ministry of Health 2003).
- The Social, Cultural and Economic Determinants of Health in New Zealand (National Health Committee 1998).
Downloads
Download or order copies from the Community Health Information Centre.
Links
- National Public Health Service (Health NZ).