Welcome to the Winterless North: Meet the Whangarei Team

If you are going to build a hand therapy clinic in Northland, it helps to have a team that genuinely loves being there.

At Hands On Rehabilitation's Whangarei clinic, based at Kensington Health Hub, the three people you will meet share a common thread: they are all exactly where they want to be.

Rachel Atkinson has been Team Leader since 2020, and for her, returning to Whangarei was coming home. Originally from the region, she graduated from Auckland Institute of Technology in 1987 and spent the decades that followed building one of the more impressive hand therapy careers in New Zealand, including time at Waikato Hospital, hospitals in the UK, Middlemore Hospital's Burns and Plastics unit, a stint on the Hand Therapy New Zealand executive committee, and her own practice in Drury. When the chance came to move back north, she took it. Outside the clinic, you will find her walking in nature with her pet therapy dog, who also volunteers alongside her at local rest homes, or working on something creative. She has found her place.

Susan Fromm took the long way to Northland. She graduated from Otago University in 1996, worked in hands, burns, and plastics at Waikato Hospital, spent six years in hospital physiotherapy in the Middle East, came back to complete the Hand and Upper Limb training at AUT and a Masters in Health Practice, and worked 11 years at an Auckland hand therapy clinic, as well as a hand therapy clinic in the Waikato. The whole time, Northland was on her mind. She was first introduced to scuba diving in the 1980s and had been watching the underwater world up north ever since. She joined the Whangarei team in February 2024, and when she is not in clinic helping patients recover from hand and upper limb injuries, she is underwater with a camera photographing fish. The winterless north suits her well.

And then there is Natasha Allen, the face patients meet when they walk through the door. Natasha is the real thing: born and raised in Northland, with 2 adult boys, 3 grandchildren, and most weekends spent on the water or at the bach. She joined as the clinic's full-time administrator in May 2024, bringing a background in real estate administration and a genuine enthusiasm for meeting the people who come through the clinic. She already can't wait to meet you.

Together, Rachel, Susan, and Natasha make up a team that knows Northland, loves Northland, and is here to make sure the region has access to the specialist hand therapy it deserves.

The Whangarei clinic is located at Kensington Health Hub, 8 Kensington Avenue, Whangarei. To book an appointment, call 09 929 9488 or email whangarei@handsonrehab.co.nz. ACC registered, no referral needed.