The endless gnawing away at services for rural communities has gone too far, a national rural leader says.
Rural Health Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand (RHAANZ) chief executive Michelle Thompson says equitable access to services for rural people is needed.
"We are losing our hospitals, our schools, we have under-funded health services, emergency services, midwives and airports. This must stop. There are well over 600,000 people living in rural New Zealand, the equivalent of easily being the country's second largest city. Agriculture and tourism are the powerhouses of the Kiwi economy.
"Rural New Zealand feeds our people three times a day with good protein, fresh fruit and vegetables. The link between good nutrition, good health — both physical and mental — and productivity is undisputed.
"So why is it, rural people constantly struggle to access the same level of services that city people enjoy?" Michelle says RHAANZ recently undertook a health workforce stocktake of members and the results clearly showed rural health services are under significant pressure.