Consumer opportunities Tā te kiritaki whai wāhi
Read more about the current open opportunities for consumers to get involved.
We support consumers being actively involved in decision-making about their health, at all levels.
Health services, including hospitals, government agencies and other services, require consumer representatives to co-design the planning, design, delivery and evaluation of health services.
Below are the current open opportunities for consumers to get involved.
Please note we publish these opportunities on behalf of a range of different agencies and groups in the health sector. Please contact each provider directly using the information provided in the listing.
Do you have an opportunity you think Consumer health forum Aotearoa members should know about?
If so, please submit an expression of interest for consumer and whānau representatives.
Current opportunities
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora (Health NZ) is seeking nominations for a consumer representative to join the Australasian Health Facility Guidelines team (AusHFG team) to help update guidance for designing radiation oncology buildings.
The guidance helps project teams plan, design and construct radiation oncology facilities across Australia and New Zealand.
Who we're looking for
Health NZ is looking for a consumer representative who:
- has supported a family member to attend or attended a radiation oncology facility themselves in the last three years
- can provide advice from a consumer or whānau perspective and brings an understanding of the unique cultural and social context of New Zealand
- has digital access to meet regularly via the online collaboration platform Microsoft Teams (Teams).
Requirements
The AusHFG team expects to meet once, online for 1 to 1.5 hours via Teams. The meeting is expected to be held in October 2026.
- The consumer representative must attend the meeting and review any supporting documents as required.
Team members are paid in line with the New South Wales (Australian) Consumer Reimbursement Policy.
- AU$40 per hour per person for meeting attendance.
If you are interested in applying, download and complete the application form and email to xanthe.torrens@tewhatuora.govt.nz
Download the application form (DOCX 427KB)
Applications close 5pm Friday 14 August 2026
Resources
https://healthfacilityguidelines.com.au/hpu/radiation-oncology-unit-1
Seeking participants who have engaged with oral health services in New Zealand.
Leeann Waaka, PhD candidate at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, is seeking participants for her doctoral research project: policy, education, practice and consumer experience may help shape a more equitable, balanced and culturally grounded oral health system in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The research is supervised and is supported through the School of Indigenous Graduate Studies at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi.
The participants
Participants should have engaged with, or attempted to engage with, oral health services in Aotearoa New Zealand. Participants’ involvement is highly valued, as lived experience and insights will contribute to a greater understanding of how the oral health system is currently experienced by those it is intended to serve.
People of all ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds are encouraged to take part.
Māori participants with lived experience are especially encouraged to participate, as these perspectives are vital to understanding how oral health services can better uphold equity, cultural responsiveness and Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.
What’s involved
Each participant will be asked to take part in a short online survey.
Participants can request a summary of the research findings if they wish.
More about the research and how to get involved
If you are interested in participating, please email: leeann.waaka76@gmail.com
Closes Friday 31 July 2026.
Have you had a broken hip or cared for someone with a broken hip?
The Australia and New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry (the Registry) collects information about what happens to older people who break their hip, both during their time at hospital and when they go home. This information is used to improve the hospital care for people who break their hip.
The Registry is looking for people to join their National Governance Committee.
The participants
Consumers and whānau should have experience with a hip fracture or caring for a person with a hip fracture.
What’s involved
The NZ Hip Fracture Registry is looking for consumers to:
- join their national committee;
- tell their story to share in print and video at education conferences;
- link with other consumers in New Zealand and Australia via online Zoom catch-ups.
More about this opportunity and how to get involved
Read the EOI – Join the New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry Consumer Movement (PDF 107KB)
Read more information and complete the EOI form
To express your interest, email nicola@nzoa.org.nz
EOI: Consumer Representative for the Building Design Guidance Review: Radiation Oncology – Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora (Health NZ) is seeking nominations for a consumer representative to join the Australasian Health Facility Guidelines team (AusHFG team) to help update guidance for designing radiation oncology buildings.
The guidance helps project teams plan, design and construct radiation oncology facilities across Australia and New Zealand.
Who we're looking for
Health NZ is looking for a consumer representative who:
- has supported a family member to attend or attended a radiation oncology facility themselves in the last three years
- can provide advice from a consumer or whānau perspective and brings an understanding of the unique cultural and social context of New Zealand
- has digital access to meet regularly via the online collaboration platform Microsoft Teams (Teams).
Requirements
The AusHFG team expects to meet once, online for 1 to 1.5 hours via Teams. The meeting is expected to be held in October 2026.
- The consumer representative must attend the meeting and review any supporting documents as required.
Team members are paid in line with the New South Wales (Australian) Consumer Reimbursement Policy.
- AU$40 per hour per person for meeting attendance.
If you are interested in applying, download and complete the application form and email to xanthe.torrens@tewhatuora.govt.nz
Download the application form (DOCX 427KB)
Applications close 5pm Friday 14 August 2026
Resources
https://healthfacilityguidelines.com.au/hpu/radiation-oncology-unit-1
Australasian Health Facility Guidelines | AUSHFG 2025
EOI: Take part in research on Oranga Niho – Restoring balance to the oral health system
Seeking participants who have engaged with oral health services in New Zealand.
Leeann Waaka, PhD candidate at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, is seeking participants for her doctoral research project: policy, education, practice and consumer experience may help shape a more equitable, balanced and culturally grounded oral health system in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The research is supervised and is supported through the School of Indigenous Graduate Studies at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi.
The participants
Participants should have engaged with, or attempted to engage with, oral health services in Aotearoa New Zealand. Participants’ involvement is highly valued, as lived experience and insights will contribute to a greater understanding of how the oral health system is currently experienced by those it is intended to serve.
People of all ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds are encouraged to take part.
Māori participants with lived experience are especially encouraged to participate, as these perspectives are vital to understanding how oral health services can better uphold equity, cultural responsiveness and Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.
What’s involved
Each participant will be asked to take part in a short online survey.
Participants can request a summary of the research findings if they wish.
More about the research and how to get involved
If you are interested in participating, please email: leeann.waaka76@gmail.com
Closes Friday 31 July 2026.
EOI: Join the New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry
Have you had a broken hip or cared for someone with a broken hip?
The Australia and New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry (the Registry) collects information about what happens to older people who break their hip, both during their time at hospital and when they go home. This information is used to improve the hospital care for people who break their hip.
The Registry is looking for people to join their National Governance Committee.
The participants
Consumers and whānau should have experience with a hip fracture or caring for a person with a hip fracture.
What’s involved
The NZ Hip Fracture Registry is looking for consumers to:
- join their national committee;
- tell their story to share in print and video at education conferences;
- link with other consumers in New Zealand and Australia via online Zoom catch-ups.
More about this opportunity and how to get involved
Read the EOI – Join the New Zealand Hip Fracture Registry Consumer Movement (PDF 107KB)
Read more information and complete the EOI form
To express your interest, email nicola@nzoa.org.nz
Consumer opportunity case studies
These consumer engagement stories describe how consumers have responded to opportunities promoted with the Consumer health forum Aotearoa. Consumers share their experience of the application process, onboarding and their contribution to the work. We hope these stories encourage others to use their lived experience and skills to contribute to the design, development, delivery and evaluation of the health system.
Northern Regional Consumer Council
- ‘I know what an outcome looks like when it honours our culture and values’: One consumer’s experience of trying to change the system from within (PDF 164KB)
- ‘I know what an outcome looks like when it honours our culture and values’: One consumer’s experience of trying to change the system from within (DOCX 67KB)
National Palliative Care case study
- When experience becomes expertise: Influencing national palliative care (PDF 218KB)
- When experience becomes expertise: Influencing national palliative care (DOCX 66KB)
Australasian Health Infrastructure Alliance case study
- Lived experience is real world knowledge about what works in practice, not just on paper (PDF 212KB)
- Lived experience is real world knowledge about what works in practice, not just on paper (DOCX 69KB)
System safety strategy rōpū
Ngā Reo Māhuri Young Voices group
FIT for symptomatic project
