Registered Nurse Casual' Emergency Department
Contract: Casual, 0 FTE Rostered and Rotating
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is firmly grounded in the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is dedicated to serving all New Zealanders. Through integration and collaboration, we're building a health system underpinned by partnership, equity, sustainability, whanau-centred care, and excellence.
About the Role:
The Registered Nurse (RN) role is to meet the needs of people and whanau accessing our services using contemporary nursing care which is safe, appropriate and effective. The care is based on comprehensive assessment, ensures continuity, and is person/whanau centred, culturally appropriate and evidence-based.Quality improvement and patient safety is an important part of this role.
All nurses employed by Te Whatu Ora will have Registration with the New Zealand Nursing Council and maintain a current annual practising certificate as a Registered Nurse. Application onto the Hutt Valley district Professional Development and Recognition Programme (PDRP) at competent, proficient or expert level is required.The PDRP is integral in assessing and monitoring the nursing skill levels.
It is the nurse's responsibility to ensure that they attend the generic orientation, yearly core competencies and maintain area-specific competency requirements. They will access policy and procedures and work within the Hutt Valley District nursing and midwifery standards criteria of care and professional practice.
The RN will respond to the changing needs of the district, performing other tasks as required. The RN is expected to contribute to the implementation of District and nursing goals and values, and to promote Te Whatu Ora - Health New Zealand Capital, Coast and Hutt Valley as a centre of excellence for nursing practice.
About the Team/Service/ Location
Hutt Hospital is a busy 260-bed facility providing secondary services for Lower and Upper Hutt cities.
Hutt Hospital is the centre for five tertiary regional and sub-regional services - Plastics, Maxillofacial and Burns Services Rheumatology Dental Services Regional Public Health and Regional (Breast and Cervical) Screening Services.
The Emergency Department (ED) is a Level 4 emergency care facility, managing approximately 80,000 patient presentations each year.
Our services include a 10-bed Minor Injuries Unit and 'The Tree Hutt,' a specialised distraction therapy area designed to provide a calming and child-friendly space for paediatric patients while they wait for care.
The ED serves a diverse population, with a high proportion of Maori and Pasifika patients, alongside a growing elderly population with complex, long-term health needs. Socioeconomic disparities contribute to increased ED presentations, often involving acute conditions that could have been managed earlier in primary care.Hutt Valley ED sees a greater number of cases linked to chronic conditions, social determinants of health, and barriers to primary care access.
Common presentations include:
- Trauma: Accidents and falls are particularly common, given the variety of activities people in the area may engage in, from work-related injuries to road traffic accidents.
- Medical Conditions: These are often acute in nature and can cover anything from heart attacks and strokes to severe infections or complications from chronic conditions (e.g., diabetes, asthma).
- Mental Health Issues: Mental health crises, such as anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies, have been growing concerns for many EDs, including at Hutt, where they often require immediate intervention to ensure patient safety.
- Paediatric Cases: The ED also sees many younger patients, especially with illnesses like viral respiratory infections, dehydration, or injuries from play or accidents.
Leadership is provided by the Nurse Manager and Clinical Head of Emergency Medicine, who work in partnership to oversee the department's daily operations and strategic direction of the ED.
The team consists of medical professionals, registered nurses, healthcare assistants, administrative personnel and volunteers (Friends of the emergency department, FEDs).
Hutt Hospital's Emergency Department (ED) teams must remain highly adaptable to the wide range of patient presentations and the diverse demographics they encounter. Given the high proportion of Maori, Pasifika, and elderly patients with complex health needs, the team must be responsive to cultural, social, and medical factors that influence care.
In addition the team are required to stay updated on the latest care techniques and be ready to handle the complexities of their diverse population. This adaptability ensures that Hutt ED delivers effective and compassionate care for all who seek help.
The department is accredited by the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine (ACEM) to provide the maximum two years of advanced training in Emergency Medicin