A new Centre for Virtual Health Innovation that aims to use technology to support patients to manage their own health and access expert advice no matter their location or circumstances is the first initiative launched under a new joint venture between Waikato District Health Board and the the University of Waikato.
The two organisations, which are also bidding to build a third medical school in New Zealand – to the consternation of the two traditional medical education providers, the universities of Auckland and Otago, which have countered with a bid to build a GP-focused School of Rural Health – have officially launched the Waikato Institute of Medicine and Health, which will focus on promoting and providing innovation in health and medical education, health technology and health service delivery models.