PREKURE And Collaborative Aotearoa Appointed To Build Aotearoa’s "Primary Care-Ready" Health Coach Workforce

PREKURE and Collaborative Aotearoa are proud to announce their appointment by Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora as one of the national providers for the Integrated Primary Mental Health and Addiction (IPMHA) Health Coach Training programme.

This strategic partnership brings together PREKURE’s world-class education in preventative health, mental health, and behaviour change with Collaborative Aotearoa’s deep primary care networks and expertise. Together, they will deliver a training pathway designed to produce a highly proficient, culturally responsive, and operationally "primary care ready" workforce from day one.

As the IPMHA model becomes business-as-usual across Aotearoa, New Zealand, the demand for highly skilled Health Coaches who can integrate seamlessly into General Practice teams has never been higher.

“A model of care is only as effective as the workforce delivering it,” says Dr Louise Schofield, CEO of PREKURE. “Health Coaches are the bridge between clinical advice and patient action. But, to make a genuine difference to the health and especially the mental health of New Zealanders, Health Coaches need deep clarity on their scope, seamless integration with their clinical teams, and the technical skills to support lasting behaviour change. With these skills, it is possible to stop the revolving door of preventable illness and mental distress and truly transform the health of our communities.”

The Convergence of Technical Excellence and Community Heart

The new programme introduces an evidence-based national curriculum and practical coaching workshops, combined with a network of up to 12 Regional Leads providing face-to-face mentorship, ensuring local relevancy.

“This partnership represents the convergence of technical excellence, cultural responsiveness, and integration,” says Jess Morgan-French, CEO of Collaborative Aotearoa. “By anchoring support in local communities through our Regional Leads, we will ensure that learning is not just academic, but relational and deeply responsive to the diverse needs of general practices and whānau across Aotearoa.”

A Focus on Deep Skills, Safety, and Sustainability

Addressing the specific needs of IPMHA employers, the training emphasises:

Safety & Accountability: Strict adherence to scope of practice, risk identification, and safe escalation pathways, ensuring coaches keep patients - and themselves - safe.

Deep Integration: Training coaches to function effectively within multidisciplinary teams to avoid isolation or underutilisation.

Real-World Skills: Moving beyond theory to build deep expertise in coaching and behaviour change, equipping the workforce to support whānau to build self-management to support long-term conditions, mental distress, and addiction.

Interactive & Practical: Prioritising role-plays and reflective practice to ensure coaches can confidently apply tools like motivational interviewing and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Tools in real-world scenarios.

Culturally Grounded: Embedding Te Ao Māori knowledge and evidence-informed coaching frameworks to deliver care that fosters genuine health and hauora equity for all.

Recognised Qualifications: Working towards the delivery of an NZQA Level 4 Micro-credential to professionalise the workforce and support career longevity.

Enrolments for the first cohort, commencing February 2026, are now open at https://prekure.com/ipmha-health-coach-training/.

About PREKURE

PREKURE is New Zealand’s leading educator in health behaviour change. Since 2018, they have trained over 2,500 Health Coaches and health professionals in the latest evidence-based science and practice of lifestyle change. With a faculty of over 30 leading clinicians, academics and coaches, PREKURE focuses on solving the root causes of preventable chronic disease by bridging the gap between knowledge and action.

About Collaborative Aotearoa

Collaborative Aotearoa is a national membership organisation representing 1.2 million enrolled service users and over 340 general practices. They are experts in co-designing models of care that prioritise equity and access, fostering health and hauora for all people within Aotearoa.

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