Te Whatu Ora Southern

What Te Whatu Ora Southern does

Te Whatu Ora Southern is the regional division of Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora, the Crown entity that replaced New Zealand's former District Health Boards on 1 July 2022. It serves as the sole publicly funded provider of hospital and community health services for the Otago and Southland regions of New Zealand's South Island, covering a geographically dispersed catchment that includes Dunedin, Invercargill, Queenstown, Central Otago, and surrounding rural areas. The division operates six hospitals — Dunedin (tertiary, with emergency department and tertiary birthing unit), Southland (secondary, with ED), Wakari (mental health), Oamaru (primary birthing), Maniototo (rural), and Lakes District (primary birthing in Queenstown) — alongside community oral health, disability, maternity, mental health and addiction, and immunisation services. Headcount is reported at 5,001-10,000 employees, with no private ownership and full Crown entity status under the New Zealand Government.

The division's technology platform comprises national digital health assets including My Health Record (personal health information portal), HealthPathways (clinical decision support), the Aotearoa Immunisation Register (AIR), Book My Vaccine, GP2GP (inter-practice health information exchange), and e-prescribing — with the Southern district noted as the first in the South Island to deploy outpatient e-prescribing. Patient-facing digital channels include Healthline (24/7 free telephone triage on 0800 611 116), Online GP Care (video/phone consultations), and Ka Ora Telecare (free rural after-hours service). Outreach to Māori, Pacific, rural, youth (12-24 with free mental health access), and Deaf/disabled communities is delivered through targeted programmes, scholarships, and interpreter services, alongside community broadcasts via Otago Access Radio.

The business model is public-sector appropriation: services are funded by the New Zealand Government, with zero fees for children under 14, Community Services Card subsidies, and National Travel Assistance for eligible patients. There is no commercial revenue, no private investment, no acquisitions, no partnerships, and no disclosed management team in the data. The entity's strategic trajectory is shaped by the 2022 health-system reforms and ongoing national digital-health consolidation rather than commercial expansion or M&A activity.

Name

Te Whatu Ora Southern

Legal name

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora

Website

https://southernhealth.nz

Company type

Public

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Te Whatu Ora Southern is the New Zealand Government Crown entity division delivering publicly funded hospital and community health services to the Otago and Southland regions via six hospitals, community clinics, and digital telehealth channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Healthcare Services

NAICS

General Medical and Surgical Hospitals (622110), Health Care and Social Assistance (62), Outpatient Care Centers (6214), Offices of Physicians (62111)

SIC

Services-Hospitals (8060), Services-General Medical & Surgical Hospitals, Nec (8062), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial/Regional Health Departments (HLAJAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Community & Regional General Hospitals (HLAFAAAB), Critical Access & Rural Hospitals (HLAFAAAG), Immunization & Vaccine Clinics (HLAKAGAJ), Nurse Triage & Clinical Call-Center Teletriage Platforms (HLALAJAC), Healthcare Utilization, Claims & Administrative Data Analytics (HLAJAJAK)

Keywords

• Public hospital services
• Community health services
• Emergency medical care
• Mental health services
• Immunisation programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Dunedin

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Te Whatu Ora Southern operates as the publicly funded regional health authority for the Otago and Southland regions of New Zealand, delivering hospital services through six hospitals (including Dunedin Hospital as a tertiary hub with emergency and birthing services and Southland Hospital with secondary services), community health programs, mental health and addiction services, immunisation clinics, and population health protection. It supplements in-person care with a portfolio of digital health services including 24/7 Healthline telephone triage, Online GP Care video consultations, Ka Ora Telecare for rural after-hours care, the My Health Record portal, Book My Vaccine, the Aotearoa Immunisation Register, and GP2GP record transfer, while pioneering outpatient e-prescribing as the first South Island district to do so.

Product overview

Te Whatu Ora Southern operates as a regional health authority within Health New Zealand, providing a comprehensive network of hospital and healthcare services across Otago and Southland. The portfolio includes six hospitals (Dunedin Hospital with tertiary emergency and birthing services, Southland Hospital with secondary services, Wakari Hospital for mental health, Oamaru Hospital, Maniototo Hospital, and Lakes District Hospital) along with community-based services including immunisation clinics, oral health, disability services, maternity services, and mental health and addiction services. Digital health offerings include Healthline (24/7 telephone advice), Online GP Care (video/phone appointments), Ka Ora Telecare (rural after-hours care), My Health Record (personal health information), Book My Vaccine, the Aotearoa Immunisation Register, GP2GP for practice-to-practice health transfers, and the National Public Health Service for population health protection.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dunedin Hospital Tertiary-level public hospital in Dunedin providing emergency department services and a tertiary birthing unit for the Otago and Southland region.
• Southland Hospital Secondary-level public hospital in Invercargill providing emergency services and a secondary birthing unit for the Southland region.
• Wakari Hospital Public hospital in Dunedin providing specialist mental health services without emergency department capabilities.
• Oamaru Hospital Public hospital in Oamaru providing primary birthing unit services.
• Maniototo Hospital Rural public hospital in Ranfurly providing hospital services without an emergency department.
• Lakes District Hospital Public hospital in Queenstown providing primary birthing unit services for the Central Lakes region.
• Healthline 24/7 free telephone advice service providing trusted health information and guidance from trained healthcare professionals.
• Online GP Care Online appointments with registered healthcare professionals available 24/7 via video app or phone consultation for New Zealanders.
• Ka Ora Telecare Free after-hours video and phone health service for rural communities, with free nurse consultations and free appointments for children under 14.
• My Health Record Personal health information platform allowing New Zealanders to access their health records online.
• Book My Vaccine Online tool for booking vaccine appointments and finding vaccination providers near the user.
• Aotearoa Immunisation Register (AIR) National immunisation register that tracks vaccination records for the New Zealand population.
• GP2GP Digital health initiative enabling the transfer of patient health information between general practices.
• Community Immunisation Clinics Free immunisation services for babies, children, and whānau available at community locations in Queenstown and Cromwell, with the ability to check immunisation status and ask questions.
• National Public Health Service — Otago and Southland Regional service responsible for preventing illness and disease, protecting population health, and promoting wellbeing and hauora in the Otago and Southland region.

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Alberta Health Services: Canada's largest fully integrated provincial health system, operating hospitals, community, and public health services across Alberta—comparable as a single regional authority delivering the full continuum of publicly funded care.
• Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora: The parent national health authority of which Te Whatu Ora Southern is a regional division; operates the same digital platforms (My Health Record, Healthline, AIR) and is the direct parent governance structure.
• NHS England: The UK national body commissioning publicly funded hospital, community, and primary care services; comparable in being a publicly funded national health authority with regional divisions and a digital-first transformation agenda.
• NSW Health: The largest Australian state health system; operates a network of public hospitals and community health services under a state-government mandate—comparable in scale, mandate, and digital health platform strategy.

Direct peers

• Te Whatu Ora Canterbury (Waitaha): Another regional division of Health New Zealand delivering hospital, community, and public health services across the Canterbury region under the same Crown entity model—directly comparable in mandate, digital platform use, and service structure.
• Te Whatu Ora Waikato: Midland-region division of Health New Zealand providing tertiary hospital services (Waikato Hospital) and rural community services—comparable in scope mix of tertiary, secondary, and rural care.
• Te Whatu Ora Northern Region: Auckland-based regional division of Health New Zealand; comparable as a publicly funded hospital and community health provider operating under the same national digital platform stack and Crown entity governance.

Regional players

• Singapore Health Services (SingHealth): Singapore's largest public healthcare cluster operating tertiary hospitals and community services; comparable as a publicly funded, regionally clustered health system with integrated digital health records.
• Vancouver Coastal Health: Canadian regional health authority serving coastal British Columbia including rural and remote communities; comparable in the combination of urban tertiary services and rural/remote care delivery under a public mandate.
• Queensland Health: Australian state health authority delivering hospital, community, and public health services across Queensland; comparable as a publicly funded, regionally organised health system with a mix of tertiary and rural hospitals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tewhatuorasouth

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Te Whatu Ora Southern