Mt Hutt Canterbury 2 Grame Murray

Canterbury

Thinking about a move to Canterbury? Canterbury isn't just picturesque with its sprawling plains and distant alpine views, it's also a thriving centre for medical experts looking to grow their careers and a quality lifestyle.  

Photo location: Mount Hutt - Credit: Graeme Murray

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Health New Zealand - Canterbury
Canterbury Hospitals
Canterbury Health Services
Watch: Living & working in North Cantebury
Relocating to the district
Vacancies in Canterbury

The Canterbury region is located on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island. Ōtautahi Christchurch, is the second largest city in New Zealand - Aotearoa and the largest city in the South Island.

Waitaha Canterbury is the home of the spectacular Southern Alps mountain range, is well-known for its outdoor adventure activities on offer, and scenic filming locations for the Lord of the Rings movies.

Canterbury
Port Hills Canterbury - Credit: Jay French

Health New Zealand - Waitaha Canterbury District

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora is the Government organisation that provides publicly-funded universal health care to 5 million Kiwis. The management and delivery of health services are broken down into 'Districts' across the country, determined by both geographic location and population.

Health New Zealand – Canterbury is the largest employer in Te Waipounamu (South Island). The district delivers healthcare services to over 600,000 people that live in the Canterbury region, covering an area of the East Coast of the South Island from Kaikōura in the North, to Ashburton in the South, as well as the Rēkohu (Chatham Islands). 

Health New Zealand - Waitaha also provides services to Te Tai o Poutini West Coast as part of a unique transalpine relationship.

View vacancies in this district

Photo location: Port Hills, Christrchurch - Credit: Jay French

The Christchurch Campus

Situated on the Christchurch Campus is Christchurch Hospital, Christchurch Women’s Hospital, Waipapa (a purpose-built ‘state of the art facility’ for acute services which opened in 2020) and Christchurch Outpatients.

Christchurch Hospital is the largest tertiary, teaching and research hospital in Te Waipounamu with 836 beds, delivering a full range of emergency, acute, elective and outpatient services, and has the busiest emergency department in Australasia.

Christchurch Women’s Hospital delivers a full range of tertiary and secondary maternity services.

Burwood Hospital is one of Aotearoa’s centres of excellence for rehabilitation and elective orthopaedic surgery and houses our Older Persons Health services. It is also one of only two leading providers of specialist Spinal Rehabilitation Care in Aotearoa.

Our Specialist Mental Health Services deliver inpatient, outpatient, community based and mobile services to both adults and children.

Ashburton and Rural Health Services covers specialist medicine and community services with several smaller rural hospitals that work closely with local primary care.

A community nurse looking through an otoscope to check the ear of a young patient

Canterbury Health Services

Christchurch Campus Services

Acute Medical Assessment
Acute Stroke
Anaesthesia
Canterbury Health Laboratories
Cardiology
Cardiothoracic
Cath Lab
Colorectal
Coronary Care Unit
COVID Ward
Cystic Fibrosis
Dental
Dermatology
Diabetes
Dialysis
Emergency Department
Endocrinology
Gastroenterology and Endoscopy
General Medicine
General Surgery
Gynaecology
Hyperbaric Medicine
Infection Prevention and Control Service
Intensive Care Unit
Medical Physics & Bioengineering
Medical Progressive Care
Maori Health
Musculoskeletal
National Bowel Screening
Nephrology
Neurology and Neurosurgery
Nuclear Medicine
Occupational Therapy
Ophthalmology
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Orthopaedics
Otolaryngology
Pain Management
Perioperative Services
Pharmacy
Physiotherapy
Plastic Surgery
Quality and Patient Safety
Radiology
Respiratory
Rheumatology and Immunology
Sexual Health Service
Social Work
Speech Language Therapy
Surgical Progressive Care
Urology
Vascular, Endovascular and Transplant

Child Health

Child and Family Safety Service
Children's Emergency Care
Children's Oncology and Haematology
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Paediatric Medical Ward
Paediatric High Care
Paediatric Outpatient Department
Paediatric Surgical Ward

Canterbury Regional Cancer and Haematology

Bone Marrow Transplant Unit
Haematology Day Unit
Medical Oncology
Oncology Research
Palliative Care
Radiation Oncology

Christchurch Women's Hospital

Birthing Suite - Tertiary and secondary level care 
Maternity Ward and Maternity Assessment
Community Maternity Units: Ashburton, Rolleston, Rangiora

Burwood Hospital

Brain Injury Unit
Community Dental Service
Infusion Service
Older Persons Health
Older Persons Mental Health
Orthopaedic Services
Perioperative Services
Public Health Nursing Team
Spinal Unit

Specialist Mental Health Services

Adult Acute Inpatient Services
Adult Community Mental Health Services
Adult Emergency Mental Health Services
Anxiety Disorders
Child, Adolescent and Family Emergency Services
Child and Adolescent Inpatient Services
Child, Adolescent and Family Community and Outreach Services
Christchurch Opioid Recovery Service
Community Alcohol and Drug Service
Eating Disorders
Early Intervention in Psychosis Service (Totara House)
Forensic Mental Health Services
Intellectual Disability Service
Kennedy Detox Unit
Mothers and Babies Service
Psychiatric Service for Adults with an Intellectual Disability (PSAID)

Ashburton and Rural Health Facilities

In-patient facilities
Day patient facilities
Outpatient and community services
Rural Hospitals in Kaikoura:
Oxford
Waikari
Ellesmere
Darfield
Screenshot 2024 12 20 at 9.46.28AM

Watch: Working & Living in North Canterbury

Between them, Charlie and Sarah Ballam have worked in medicine in the UK, Australia and the North Island of New Zealand. Now happily settled and working in rural medical practices in North Canterbury, the pair say they’d never work anywhere else.

Castle Hill - Credit: Hamish Dowson
Location: Castle Hill - Credit: Hamish Dowson
Ōpuke Thermal Pools & Spa, Methven - Credit: Miles Holden
Location: Ōpuke Thermal Pools, Methven - Credit: Miles Holden
Mt Hutt - Credit: ChristchurchNZ
Location: Mount Hutt Ski Field - Credit: ChristchurchNZ
Kaikoura Kaikōura Peninsula Walkway - Credit: Miles Holden
Location: Kaikōura Peninsula - Credit: Miles Holden
Riverside Market - Source: ChristchurchNZ Toolkit
Location: Christchurch - Credit: ChristchurchNZ

Relocating to Canterbury

A warm welcome to Canterbury! The journey of moving to a new country can be both exciting and challenging, but rest assured we are here to support you and provide guidance you need at every step of the way. 

Riverside Lane shopping - Source: ChristchurchNZ

Getting Around

In addition to the vibrant city of Christchurch, the Canterbury region has a mix of landscapes that outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy.

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Riverside Lane shopping - Source: ChristchurchNZ

Getting Around

Photo location: Christchurch - Credit: ChristchurchNZ

When you arrive

Driving in New Zealand

You're allowed to use your current driver's license in New Zealand for up to 12 months per visit. After that, you'll need to convert to a New Zealand license. Find out more about driving in New Zealand.

 

Getting around Canterbury
  • Metro buses operate 7 days a week from the city centre to outer suburbs. ​
  • Taxis and rideshare services Zoomy, Ola and Uber are also available in Christchurch as well as a variety of rental vehicle providers. 
  • For the keen cyclists there are now more than 60km of cycleways around Christchurch and the central city, which make getting around much safer and easier for everyone. 
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Renting or buying a house - Source: Pexels

Housing options

The Canterbury region offers a wide range of housing options to suit different lifestyles and budgets.

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Housing options

When you arrive

You may consider booking temporary accommodation until you can find a longer-term rental. There is a variety of short-term accommodation options available in Christchurch. 

Short term accommodation options


Rentals

Canterbury's real estate market offers a range of rental properties to suit your preferences and needs. Whether you're looking to rent a stylish city apartment or a place in the suburbs, local rental agencies can help you to locate a property. Searching online is a good place to start! Note that most rentals in Aotearoa are unfurnished, however furniture and whiteware can be rented in some parts of the country.

Rental agencies

 

Buying or building a house

We know that moving to a new country is a big move, and buying or building a home there makes it even more significant. If you're a healthcare professional on NZ's Green List of roles, you have a unique opportunity to speed up your residency process. Normally, only residents and citizens can buy a home to live in in New Zealand. When you can, use this tool to find out if you can purchase a house in New Zealand.

 

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Biking at Hagley Park, Chch - Source: ChristchurchNZ Lake Pukaki - Mackenzie, Aoraki Mount Cook

Take the next step

Made the decision to move to New Zealand - Aotearoa?

Fill out our five-minute form with your details, and we'll match you to your preferred location based on your experience and preferences.

Photo location, from left: Lake Pukaki; Hagley Park - Credit: ChristchurchNZ

Register with Health New Zealand