Senior Coordinators - Mental Health Acute Services Flow Coordinators

North Island - Waikato Hamilton; Hamilton; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is seeking an Acute Services Flow Coordinator to act as the senior clinical interface between Emergency Departments and Acute Mental Health Services across Waikato. You will oversee clinical presentations, support timely patient flow, and enhance data accuracy and workforce capability.

You will lead improvements, influence pathways, and deliver targeted education across district sites including rural EDs, contributing to equitable, patient‑centred care.

Qualifications

• Advanced mental health assessment and clinical decision‑making for high‑risk presentations.
• Experience working across acute mental health and Emergency Department settings.
• Strong quality improvement and analytical capability using audit data to identify trends.
• Ability to provide clinical leadership, specialist advice and targeted education.
• Commitment to timely, accurate and patient‑centred care with equity and Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.

Responsibilities

• Provide advanced oversight of mental health presentations across Waikato EDs, including rural sites, and proactively identify and support the management of ED breaches.
• Appropriate liaison with rural emergency departments including AVL assessment where indicated.
• Lead review of mental health ED presentations to improve coding accuracy, documentation, data integrity and consistency.
• Provide advanced clinical assessment, specialist advice and decision‑making support in complex or high‑acuity presentations. Facilitate crisis assessments where indicated.
• Lead audit, analysis and quality improvement activity, monitoring breach patterns, coding accuracy and performance against key indicators including ED 6‑hour targets.
• Deliver targeted education and work collaboratively with ED and Acute Mental Health Services to strengthen pathways, escalation processes and district‑wide practice.

Skills

Advanced MH assessment

Clinical decision-making

Quality improvement

Analytical capability

Clinical leadership

Equitable care

Job description

Senior Coordinators - Mental Health Acute Services Flow Coordinators

• Permanent 80 hours per fortnight - rotating roster across AM and PM shifts, seven days per week
• Senior clinical interface between Waikato Emergency Departments and Acute Mental Health Services
• Lead improvements in patient flow, clinical quality, data integrity and workforce capability across local and rural ED settings

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is firmly grounded in the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is committed to building a health system that serves all New Zealanders.

About the Role

As an Acute Services Flow Coordinator, you will work as a senior clinical interface between Emergency Departments and Acute Mental Health Services. You will provide clinical oversight of mental health presentations, support timely patient flow, strengthen the accuracy of coding and data, and provide specialist clinical support for complex or high-risk presentations.

This is an opportunity to influence system performance across Waikato, including rural emergency departments. You will work closely with ED, clinicians and crisis team leadership to identify and reduce breaches, analyse trends, improve pathways and processes, and deliver targeted education that supports timely, accurate and patient-centred care.

Key responsibilities:

• Provide advanced oversight of mental health presentations across Waikato EDs, including rural sites, and proactively identify and support the management of ED breaches.
• Appropriate liaison with rural emergency departments including AVL assessment where indicated.
• Lead review of mental health ED presentations to improve coding accuracy, documentation, data integrity and consistency.
• Provide advanced clinical assessment, specialist advice and decision-making support in complex or high-acuity presentations. Facilitate crisis assessments where indicated.
• Lead audit, analysis and quality improvement activity, monitoring breach patterns, coding accuracy and performance against key indicators including ED 6-hour targets.
• Deliver targeted education and work collaboratively with ED and Acute Mental Health Services to strengthen pathways, escalation processes and district-wide practice.

Click here to view the position description.

About the Team/Service

Acute Mental Health Services works closely with Emergency Departments across Waikato to support people presenting with acute mental health needs. This role works across Waikato Hospital and rural ED sites - Taumarunui, Thames, Tokoroa and Te Kuiti - supporting a consistent, district-wide approach to mental health presentations, clinical flow and quality improvement

About Hamilton

Hamilton, where Waikato Hospital is situated, is a vibrant city nestled alongside the scenic Waikato River, offering a perfect mix of nature and culture. Explore the stunning Hamilton Gardens, home to themed gardens from Italy to Asia, or visit the Waikato Museum to delve into the region's rich history. The city also boasts the Hamilton Zoo, where you can walk through an aviary filled with native birds. Hamilton is a lively hub, with a variety of cafes, restaurants, and bars, along with events like rugby, cricket, and the famous National Agricultural Fieldays and Balloons over Waikato festival. With its vibrant atmosphere and proximity to outdoor adventures, Hamilton is an ideal place to live and work.

For more information on living and working in Waikato click here

About you

You will be a senior clinician with the clinical judgement, leadership and systems focus required to work across Emergency Department and Acute Mental Health interfaces. You will bring:

• Advanced mental health assessment and clinical decision‑making skills, including confidence supporting complex or high‑risk presentations.
• Experience working collaboratively across acute mental health and/or Emergency Department settings, with the ability to influence across teams and disciplines.
• Strong quality improvement and analytical capability, including the ability to use audit and performance data to identify trends, gaps and improvement opportunities.
• Ability to provide clinical leadership, specialist advice and targeted education to strengthen workforce capability and consistency.
• A strong commitment to timely, accurate and patient‑centred care, with an understanding of equitable service delivery and Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.

Working at Health New Zealand

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is dedicated to ensuring excellent healthcare for the people of New Zealand. We embrace a workforce that is diverse and inclusive so that we are better positioned to understand and service our community. We welcome applications from our diverse Māori, Pacific, disabled, and rainbow communities.

All applications must be submitted through our online careers portal before 11:59 pm on 7 October 2026. If you have any questions about the role, please contact Ashlee Heymans at [e-mail]

We will review applications as received and may proceed with the recruitment process before the closing date of this advert.