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Chiropractic now available at Tarawera Medical Complex

Up until now Kawerau residents choosing to access Chiropractic treatment have had to travel out of town. As reported in the Echo, starting last Thursday, Jay Preston from Preston Family Chiropractic in Papamoa has started to offer sessions at the Tarawera Medical Complex, utilising the consulting room available at Tarawera Pharmacy. This adds another service to Kawerau’s One Stop Shop for healthcare, which for those who prefer the convenience of accessing all services at one site, which now offers 6 fully qualified and experienced specialist GPs, 5 practice nurses, visiting orthopaedic specialist, laboratory, pharmacy and now chiropractic treatments.


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Welcome Dr. Byrdie Johnston

We are very excited to Welcome Byrdie to the Tarawera Medical Centre. She enrolled at the medical centre on the advice of a friend who had been a Rural House Surgeon with us and enquired as to whether we may have any work when she was ready to return to work after maternity leave. After the challenges we have had in getting doctors in small town New Zealand this was almost unbelievable! Byrdie come highly recommended from her GP teachers and previously practiced in Rotorua where she pursued her cycling passion.

We are now, for the first time since the Porritt Clinic suddenly closed and landed us with a 50% increase in patients to try and care for, back up to a full complement of doctors. This has enabled us to start offering drop in clinics in the morning so that patients that need to be seen urgently can just come in without having to phone for an appointment. It has been a very challenging time for us to try and keep up with the demand and we really appreciate the frequently expressed understanding and support of our patients over these past few years.


Welcome Dr. Aidan Williams (again)!

Despite the date, this is no April Fools joke!

Dr. Aidan Williams has joined Tarawera Medical Centre as partner. Aidan began in January 2013 as an assistant with a view to partnership and from day one has fitted perfectly in to our team with his dedicated and friendly manner, and has been very popular with patients. When the opportunity came up to join the team with an established track record of quality permanently, he took it without hesitation. The recent glowing Cornerstone review validated his decision and reinforced how much more there is to a quality medical practice than just a building to house it.

Tarawera Medical Centre remains 100% owned by the doctors who are free to advocate directly for their patients and are not constrained by demands of shareholders of a holding company wanting to maximise their profits.


Free smear tests

Just a reminder that smear tests are free to all our enrolled patients. As a practice we subsidise this service to ensure that there is no financial barrier to accessing this important preventive test. We took this decision when the Eastern Bay PHA reintroduced age limits for the free sexual health visits that we had worked so hard to achieve for the Kawerau PHO. All our nurses are qualified to do smear tests so please book an appointment if you are due for a smear test. Reminder letters and txt messages are sent out when you are due for your next smear so please take advantage of this opportunity.

Smear tests are advised for all women from 20 to 70 years of age to help diagnose cancer of the cervix at an early stage so that curative treatment is possible. If detected only when symptoms appear the risk of the disease being too advanced to cure is significantly increased. Having a regular smear test every three years significantly reduces the risk of developing invasive cancer (1 in 90 if not screened will develop cancer and only 1 in 570 if screened) and the risk of dying from cancer of the cervix (1 in 200 will die from cervical cancer if not screened and only 1 in 1280 would die if screened), so having regular screening reduces you risk to about one sixth of what it would be if you didn’t have a regular smear.

This link  from Healthed NZ  provides more information so that you can be better informed.