About Us

What we do


Allied Health Aotearoa New Zealand (AHANZ) provides a forum for representatives of allied health professional associations to work together to:

  • Raise the profile of allied health professionals
  • Develop reciprocal relationships with health sector and governmental stakeholders
  • Be the connected voice for AHANZ member associations
  • Support member health professional associations
  • Provide advice to Te Whatu Ora, Te Aka Whai Ora, the Ministry of Health and the Minister of Health
  • Provide a forum for professions to discuss issues of common interest
  • Share resources, information and experience
  • Educate and raise awareness of a wider view of health and wellbeing
  • Promote employment and professional standards for allied health professionals

Vision


Optimum health and wellbeing for all New Zealanders.

Mission statement


Ensuring allied health professions are recognised and contribute to their full potential to enable New Zealanders to enjoy health and wellbeing.

Activities


AHANZ meets every quarter to discuss issues of importance to the allied health sector.

 

Our activities include:

  • Actively seeking opportunities for consultation and involvement in the formation of relevant policy, legislation and other issues at the earliest stages.
  • Actively pursuing relationships with key groups and stakeholders.
  • Making submissions on issues of relevance to allied health.
  • Making media statements where appropriate.

Strategic goals


  1. Allied health support of health equity for Māori
  2. Proactive political advocacy
  3. Engaged membership

History


Who are Allied Health?


Allied health covers a broad range of around 50 health professions that work alongside medicine, nursing and dentistry to make up the NZ healthcare system.

 

AHANZ has over 30 national allied health associations in its membership which collectively represent well over 30,000 individual allied health professionals. Our members touch the lives of the majority of Kiwis at different points in their lives, helping meet their physical, nutritional, mental, emotional, and social health needs.

 

These diverse experts represent an integral and often forgotten part of the health care team, addressing a multitude of conditions and also helping to preserve and enhance wellbeing.

 

They include a wide range of well-known professions such as acupuncture, audiology, chiropractic, dietitians, physiotherapy, psychologists and social workers, as well as exercise professionals and physiologists, and lesser known but no less important hospital play specialists, massage therapists, lab workers, orthotists and prosthetists.

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Working better together and with an improved funding and referral model, allied health has the potential to contribute further and help solve many of the systemic issues, inequities, and poor outcomes that exist in our current broken system.

Who is AHANZ?


Allied Health Aotearoa New Zealand (formerly the Allied Health Professional Associations Forum) was formed in 2001 with the support of the then Minister of Health, Hon. Annette King.

 

AHANZ's earliest contribution was on the Health Practitioners' Competence Assurance Bill. AHANZ was involved, on its own and in concert with other health professional associations and unions, in lobbying the Ministry and Minister of Health, and in presenting submissions to the Health Select Committee.

 

Since that time AHANZ has made numerous submissions on such topics as the health workforce and chronic conditions. We have had representation on a number of external bodies, for example, Rural Primary Healthcare Forum, the PHO Task Force and the Primary Health Care Advisory Council.

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In addition, AHANZ has established a strategic plan and developed a definition of allied health. It has also continued to organise regular member meetings with a wide range of guest speakers and acts as a point of co-ordination and information sharing between associations.

AHANZ Constitution

Events