Hospital Play Specialist (Core), Starship Children's Health
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is firmly grounded in the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is committed to building a health system that serves all New Zealanders.
About the role
The Hospital Play Specialists work with all age groups supporting infants, children and young people to become confident and competent learners within the context of their hospital experience. With a strong educational and psycho-social framework that supports whānau involvement, we facilitate children’s continued development and their ability to cope successfully with challenges related to their hospital visit.
You may find us normalising the hospital visit in a play space, familiarising children with medical equipment or procedures, supporting children during procedures such as blood tests, or developing and practicing coping strategies to manage tough times. This role is challenging but very rewarding when working with children, their whānau and our wider multidisciplinary team.
About the Service
The Starship play specialists, who are highly-trained education experts, work alongside nurses, doctors and allied health professionals (such as dietitians, physios and psychologists) to support children in hospital. This might be with children and their whānau at the child’s bedside, in a playroom, in a treatment room or in the Children’s Emergency Department (CED).
About you
We welcome applications from those with:
For further details, please refer to the Position Description here.
For more information about this role please contact the Hiring Manager, Nicola Woollaston via NWoollaston@adhb.govt.nz
Working at Health New Zealand
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is dedicated to ensuring excellent healthcare for the people of New Zealand. We embrace a workforce that is diverse and inclusive so that we are better positioned to understand and service our community. We welcome applications from our diverse Māori, Pacific, disabled, and rainbow communities.
Starship Child Health is a dedicated paediatric healthcare service and major teaching centre, providing family centred care to neonates, children and young people throughout New Zealand and the South Pacific. Starship is a part of Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora and is the only comprehensive children’s hospital in New Zealand serving a population of approximately 1 million children.
How to apply
We’ll be reviewing applications and conducting interviews as they come in, so the position may close before the listed deadline. If you're interested, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.
To apply please click on the ‘Apply’ tab below, outlining your experience and motivation to apply to this role and attaching your updated CV and Covering Letter.
If you have any accessibility or technical issues with the online process, please contact Anél Foord, Recruitment Consultant at Anel.Foord@TeWhatuOra.govt.nz quoting ADHB22810 to discuss how we can best support your application.
| Reference | ADHB22810 |
|---|---|
| Posted on | 30/05/2025 |
| Closes on | 08/06/2025 |
| Location | Auckland Central |
| Expertise | Play Specialist |
| This position is a Core Children's worker under the Children's Act & requires full safety checks completed before any new employee starts | |
Pre-Employment Health Screening Read more
Te Toka Tumai | Auckland is an inclusive and equal opportunity employer that values and embraces the diverse population we serve. We welcome and support people of all gender identities, ages, ethnicities, sexual orientations, disability and religion.
