Placements in Primary Care

Help grow the next generation of health professionals by giving them experience in primary and community care.

Hosting a placement gives trainees practical experience, supports their learning and brings fresh perspectives to your team

Community-Based Attachments

Community-Based Attachments (CBAs) are 13 week placements that give house officers supervised experience caring for patients in the community.

Placements are accredited by the Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ) and take place in general practices and urgent care centres.

Health New Zealand remains the house officer’s employer and pays their salary. Your practice or urgent care centre provides the setting, supervision and learning opportunities.

  • Hosting a CBA helps you:

    • Introduce early career doctors to primary and community care.

    • Support the development of the future medical workforce.

    • Strengthen connections between hospital and community care.

    Your practice or urgent care centre receives $5,000 to support the placement, administered through the Workforce Hub.

  • Your district’s Resident Medical Officer (RMO) Unit or Medical Education Training Unit (METU) arranges placements.

    The hosting arrangements are set out in a Memorandum of Understanding with Health New Zealand.

  • To host a house officer, your practice or urgent care centre needs:

    • Named clinical supervisors with appropriate qualifications and registration.

    • Clear arrangements for day to day supervision, support and escalation.

    • Suitable consulting, clinical and administrative space.

    • A structured orientation and opportunities to participate in the team.

    • Two hours of protected training time for the house officer each week.

    • A commitment to meeting MCNZ accreditation requirements.

  • Named clinical supervisors oversee the house officer’s training and supervision. Day-to-day support can involve the wider clinical team, including nurses and nurse practitioners, with clear arrangements for seeking advice from a supervisor.

  • Once the placement is complete, email an invoice or taxable supply information to [email protected].

    Please include:

    • The name of your general practice or urgent care provider.

    • The placement dates.

    • The house officer’s name and postgraduate year (PGY1 or PGY2).

    • Payment details, if these are not already held by WellSouth PHO.

    • GST details, where applicable.

Interested in hosting?

Get in touch to discuss hosting a house officer and the next steps for your practice or urgent care centre.

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