14/05/2026
Kia ora e te whānau, here is a great write up of our Rakiura NP Shawna.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1H3XGsP4Bt/
“When people ask what I do, I say it is anything that can happen, from preconception to postmortem, that needs healthcare, wellness input or support.
That’s me.
I’m Shawna Stephens, and I work as a rural remote nurse practitioner and prime responder on Rakiura/Stewart Island. When I am here on the island, I am on duty 24 hours a day.
One thing I wish people understood is that the urban rules and systems don’t apply here. I work entirely alone, but I also rely on the people who always show up: the volunteers, the fire department, St Johns, search and rescue, police, and the community people who care.
In remote practice, you are constantly triaging. You might be seeing one person, then something more urgent comes in and everything changes. You must decide what needs to happen now, what can wait, and who needs to be seen today.
A good day is simple; patients get what they need, the community gets what they need, and no harm is caused.
There was a time a page came in about someone having an anaphylactic reaction out on the track. A helicopter was coming, but helicopters can take hours to arrive here, and if you are having anaphylaxis, you don’t have hours. Volunteers arrived, the police and search and rescue team organised dinghies, I rang the ED consultant, and we launched from the beach. We found them and in turn, saved their life.
That kind of thing happens here. People know their role, they step in, and they make it happen.
What keeps me in this work is the community. I like the breadth and depth of rural generalism, and the connection to the place and the people who live here.
For me, care is about being honest, accountable, and compassionate. It is about treating the person in front of you as a person, not a number, and asking, “How would I show up if this was my family?”
That is what guides me, perseverance, integrity, and authenticity.”
