LinKIDS helps connect families to health services in the Canterbury region.
All preschool children in New Zealand are eligible to receive certain publicly funded Health services. Your child/children may be eligible for a variety of health services such as General Practice care, immunisation, oral health services, getting ready for school and general health and wellbeing care.
The LinKIDS Team oversee the coordination of the following services:
If you are a new family to New Zealand
You can download and read about how we can help you in our LinKIDS Brochure (500KB, PDF)
If you are a GP in Canterbury
You can download and read our LinKIDS letter of introduction for General Practices in Canterbury (100KB, PDF).
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
In Canterbury children are enrolled with a suite of health services at birth. These include
Your LMC should have discussed this with you in your third trimesters and shared the New-born Enrolment Process with you.
For more information, read the Newborn Enrolment Process (350KB, PDF)
Every year in New Zealand up to 170 babies are born with significant hearing loss. Without early detection, these babies may have speech and language delays and be unable to develop adequate communication skills.
You will be offered a free hearing screening to check whether your baby can hear well. The screening test is free and simple and will not hurt or harm your baby. You can be with your baby during screening and you will be told the results straightaway.
If you are not seen in the Maternity unit you will be sent an appointment for an outpatient’s clinic. The information you provide is confidential to the DHB and to the National Screening Unit which monitors the programme.
Find out more about Free hearing checks on the Ministry of Health website.
Dental Services are provided *FREE in New Zealand for those aged 0 – 17 years old. This includes education, assessment and basic treatment.
Children's dental services are provided through check-ups in schools and check-ups and treatment at purpose-built community dental clinics.
This service is provided by dentists and is free until turning 18 years of age.
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora has contracts with a number of private dental providers in the community to provide FREE dental care to adolescents until their 18th birthday. If you enrol with one of the selected practices you are entitled to a FREE check up every 12 months and most treatments (such as fillings) are FREE of charge.
Year 8 students will be asked to choose a dentist when attending their last school-based check-up. The Community Dental Team will then pass on dental information to the chosen dentist.
You can find a list of dentists in your area on the Community Dental Service pages on this website. For more information about enrolment you can phone the Community Dental Service on 0800 846 983 or email them at commdental@cdhb.health.nz
Visit the Community Dental Service pages for further information about DHB oral health services.
The Aotearoa Immunisation Register (AIR) is a computerised information system that records immunisations in New Zealand. The AIR allows health professionals to quickly find out what vaccines your child has been given and ensure the right vaccine is given at the right time.
For further information, you can phone the AIR on 03 337 8966, or visit the Aotearoa Immunisation Register section on the Ministry of Health website.
You can enrol with a General Practice in Canterbury to receive *FREE healthcare for eligible children 0-13 years.
General Practitioners (GPs) in Canterbury provide a range of free health services for children from 0-13 years and subsidised care for adults. When enrolled you have a dedicated team of doctors and nurses looking out for your health.
For more information contact:
If you require care after-hours this is also free from 6.00pm for eligible children aged under 13 years.
In the case of an emergency always dial 111
This is a free service that will support you to ensure your child grows and develops to their full potential.
The Well Child services in Canterbury are…
Canterbury service providers are
Provider of a range of health, education and social services that promote health education, culture, history and wellbeing of Māori/women and their whānau.
Phone: 0800 66 99 57
A nationwide provider of support services for the development, health and wellbeing of children under 5 years. Plunket provide culturally appropriate services and have diverse staffing to meet the needs of family/whanau including Plunket Nurses, Plunket Kaiawhina, Health Workers and an Asian Health Worker.
Phone: 0800 93 39 22
Offers support services to children, young people and their families with nurses based at rural facilities.
Te Tai O Marokura is a kaupapa Māori Health & Social Service which provides a range of community, social and health services to people of all ethnicities living in the Kaikoura region.
Phone: 03 319 5801
Etu Pasifika provides culturally appropriate healthcare services and operate as a Pacific health hub for Pacific community.
Phone: 03 365 1002
LinKIDS is a service aimed at connecting your child/children with core health services within the Canterbury Region. Your child/children may be eligible for a variety of core health services such as:
We have shared your information with these services to assist in enrolment. Your child’s/children’s health is very important to us and our aim is to ensure all families are connected with these services and can access treatment if needed.
If you have moved to another part of New Zealand please advise your general practice or email us at LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz and we will advise the appropriate region that you have moved to and they will link you to the key health services for your child/children in that region.
If you have left the country or are planning to leave in the near future please let your general practice know or email us at LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz and we will advise the health providers that look after your child/children so they know they no longer need to follow up on your children’s’ health care.
Download the Are you a new family in Canterbury? Form (1MB, PDF)
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
The Young Parents Support Service (YPSS) is available free to all pregnant women and parents (including fathers and fathers-to-be) where at least one parent is 19 years or younger. YPSS providers offer individual or group supports including:
Short‑term navigational supports, e.g. housing access, benefit entitlements, preparing for baby.
Intensive support for parenting education, confidential crisis support, mental health and addiction support, relationship and communication skills, and home skills.
Parents aged 19 years and younger who have already had a child, may find they would benefit from some short- or long-term supports in one or more areas, e.g. accessing and navigating their financial entitlements, breastfeeding support, parenting skills, home skills (e.g. cooking and feeding children), support through a personal crisis, or they may like to find some peer support by meeting other young parents.
Free services covering these and other relevant topics are available through the Young Parents Support Service which offers navigational support. Understanding and promoting Māori tikanga/practice around caregiving, identity and well-being is likely to be beneficial for young Māori parents.
If you don’t have a Midwife please contact the Midwifery Resource Centre
Download the Referral to YPSS Form (70KB, PDF)
Note: This form is for use by a health professional, only health professionals such as a doctor can refer people to the YPSS.
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
The LinKIDS service maintains the Canterbury Region rheumatic fever database. It works with general practice to ensure timely treatment.
If a patient is diagnosed as having rheumatic fever they receive a Bicillin injection every 21-28 days.
If a patient is overdue or not engaging with general practice, LinKIDS contacts the patient and supports them to general practice, otherwise, they will refer the patient to outreach nursing.
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services or you would like us to assist you at home please contact us.
More information about Rheumatic Fever...
Information about Rheumatic Fever on the Ministry of Health website.
Information about Rheumatic Fever on Community HeathPathways (This resource can only be accessed by health professionals)
Download the Rheumatic Fever Referral Form in either PDF or Word format.
Rheumatic Fever Referral Form (PDF, 20KB).
Note: This referral form is only for use by health professionals.
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
If a parent cannot access general practice to have their child immunised, due to lack of transport, or other pressing issues the general practice will refer to LinKIDS using the Missed Events Referral form to see if we are able to offer support to the family. A general practice will also refer to this service if they have not been able to engage with a family, and we will assist them to locating the family.
Referrals can be made to this service by the general practice, LMC or other health care providers. You are welcome to contact the team directly if you are a parent and need support for immunisations for any child under the age of 5 years old.
The team at LinKIDS will endeavour to make contact with the family to see if they are still in Canterbury, if all information the general practice has is correct and what challenges the family maybe experiencing that is preventing them from visiting the general practice. If address and contact details have changed we will inform the general practice so they can contact the family and invite them to make an appointment.
If it is identified that the family needs home support the team will forward the referral to the nurse who will make contact with the family to arrange a home visit.
If LinKIDS is unable to make contact with the family by email, phone or letter the nurse may drop in on the home to locate the families.
If the family has moved the team at LinKIDS will update the general practice and the Aotearoa Immunisation Register. Please refer to the Moving location tab to find out what happens next and how you can help to keep this information up to date to insure your child gets the health care they are eligible for.
Download the Missed Events Referral Form in either PDF or DOC format:
Missed Events Referral Form (100 KB, PDF)
Missed Events Referral Form (50KB, WORD DOC)
Please note: This referral form is only to be used by a health professional.
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
LinKIDs information and documents for health professionals.
LinKIDS Brochure (PDF, 500KB, PDF)
LinKIDS Canterbury Introduction Letter to General Practices - January 2021 (150KB, PDF)
Missed Events Referral Form (100 KB, PDF)
Missed Events Referral Form (50KB, WORD DOC)
Notification of Newborn for Enrolment Form (80KB, PDF)
Newborn Enrolment Process (350KB, PDF)
Are you a new family in Canterbury? Form (1MB, PDF)
Rheumatic Fever on Community HealthPathways
Rheumatic Fever Referral Form (20KB, PDF).
Rheumatic Fever Referral Form (50KB, Word DOC)
Referral to YPSS Referral Form (70KB, PDF)
The LinKIDS team is here to help you and your family connect with services, so if you have any questions around access to services please contact us.
Email: LinKIDS@cdhb.health.nz
Freephone: 0800 555 121 and leave a message, we will return your call.
Page last updated: 7 August 2024
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