CareHQ, the virtual GP service and joint venture between ProCare and Southern Cross Health Insurance provided care to more than 43,000 patients over the last 12 months, up 78% on the 12 months prior, where it served more than 24,000 patients.

Bindi Norwell, Chair of CareHQ said: “This huge boost in numbers is a true testament to the value that CareHQ and telehealth services provide to the people of Aotearoa New Zealand, and the assistance that has been provided to support General Practices across the motu.

Norwell says that as General Practices continue to face high levels of demand, and workforce shortages, CareHQ has been a great support to help with afterhours and overflow services.

“In the last 12 months, the team have made fantastic progress, collaborating with general practices to find new and innovative ways that CareHQ can provide support,” she said.

With the launch of new services such as an off-work certificate clinic and extended consultation options, patients now have even more ways they can access healthcare services with CareHQ and find the support they need.

Patient feedback is exceptionally positive, with more than 21,000 patients rating the service, and an average post-consultation feedback score of 4.8 out of 5.

Dr Reza Jarral, Chief Medical Officer, CareHQ said: “The last year has been one of growth and expansion for CareHQ. Our introduction of extended consults has seen a significant 10% uptake, which has highlighted the desirability of this option for patients, as well as allowing extra time for our GPs to deal with more complex presentations including mental health issues.

“As a non-enrolling clinic, CareHQ has found its place in overflow care and has been available for a great number of patients when their own GP is unavailable or fully booked. We ensure that patients are navigated back to their enrolled GP where appropriate for continuity of care,” adds Dr Jarral.  

Celanchia Espin, Practice Manager at OneCare Health said, “CareHQ has been an invaluable help to our practice over recent months, particularly as some of the team have been away on leave or sick with winter bugs. The support provided by CareHQ means that we can ensure our patients still get the healthcare they need, when they need it.”

Norwell adds “CareHQ is going from strength to strength, and I look forward to celebrating the next milestones that the team are striving to achieve.”

ENDS

For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Jackie Shaw
Marketing Manager, CareHQ
jackie.shaw@southerncross.co.nz
M: 027 206 8309

Kim Thompson
Senior Marketing Communications Manager, ProCare
kim.thompson@procare.co.nz
M: 022 028 6106

About CareHQ

CareHQ is a virtual consultation service that provides New Zealanders with a convenient and easy to use telehealth consultations with specialist General Practitioners (GP), there for when they can’t see their regular GP or need support after-hours.

CareHQ is made possible by a partnership between Southern Cross Health Insurance and ProCare however CareHQ exists as an independent service from both these organisations.

Collectively Southern Cross Health Insurance and ProCare already care for and are trusted by more than one million New Zealanders:

• Southern Cross has more than 920,000 members
• ProCare supports 170 general practices across Tamaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau, covering almost 700,000 enrolled patients.

About Southern Cross Health Insurance

Southern Cross Health Insurance has been supporting New Zealanders on their health journeys since 1961. Today, we provide cover for one in five New Zealanders every year.

As a not-for-profit friendly society, Southern Cross Health Insurance operates solely for the benefit of members, rather than shareholders or overseas owners. We pay more claims than any other New Zealand health insurer and are proud of our industry-leading rate of return, $5.03 billion returned in claims over past five years[1], out of $5.82 billion received in premiums – representing more than 86 per cent of premiums returned to members in claims.

Southern Cross is a group of independent businesses united by a shared brand with an interest in the health and wellbeing of New Zealanders. With a range of products and services and a not-for-profit ethos, Southern Cross is New Zealand’s leading independent provider and funder of healthcare.

About ProCare

ProCare is a leading healthcare provider that aims to deliver the most progressive, pro-active and equitable health and wellbeing services in Aotearoa. We do this through our clinical support services, mental health and wellness services, virtual/tele health, mobile health, smoking cessation and by taking a population health and equity approach to our mahi.

As New Zealand’s largest Primary Health Organisation, ProCare represents a network of general practice teams and healthcare professionals who provide care to nearly 700,000 patients across Auckland. These practices serve the largest Pacific and South Asian populations enrolled in general practice and the largest Māori population in Tāmaki Makaurau. For more information go to www.procare.co.nz

[1] As at 30 June 2022