Senior Coordinators - Mental Health Acute Services Flow Coordinators

New Zealand Government; Hamilton; On-site; NZD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is seeking an Acute Services Flow Coordinator to act as a senior clinical interface between Waikato Emergency Departments and Acute Mental Health Services. You will oversee mental health presentations, support patient flow, and contribute to data integrity and clinical quality across Waikato facilities.

The role requires leadership across rural and urban ED settings, with responsibilities to reduce breaches, improve pathways and deliver targeted education to

Qualifications

• Advanced mental health assessment and clinical decision-making skills.
• Experience working across acute mental health and Emergency Department settings.
• Quality improvement and analytical capability to identify trends and gaps.
• Ability to provide clinical leadership, specialist advice and targeted education.

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-risk 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.

Job description

Waikato HospitalPermanent 80 hours per fortnight - rotating roster across AM and PM shifts, seven days per weekSenior clinical interface between Waikato Emergency Departments and Acute Mental Health ServicesLead 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-risk 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.

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.

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.