Paramedicine Research Unit

The Paramedicine Research Unit (PRU) was established in 2021 as a result of a collaborative research endeavour between AUT, Hato Hone St John, Wellington Free Ambulance Service, and Whitireia NZ | Te Pūkenga. The goal of this multi-agency collaborative endeavour was to establish a committed platform for the production of high-quality paramedicine-related research in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The PRU represents the foundation for a larger transdisciplinary research centre that will focus on evidence-based pre-hospital health care practices and also research that promotes kaupapa Māori and Tiriti-based relationships for health equity in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The PRU is hosted within the Department of Paramedicine in the School of Clinical Sciences at AUT.

Our core values

Partnership, integrity, responsibility, accountability, collegiality, respect, and enhancement of paramedicine-related health outcomes are the values that guide all activities undertaken by PRU, particularly those related to the establishment and preservation of meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships with Māori.

Our mission

The mission of the PRU is to produce collaborative high-quality, clinical, and epidemiological paramedicine-related research that is contextually appropriate and translatable into practice.

Aim and objectives

The aim of the PRU is to create research that is both contextually and clinically beneficial to Aotearoa New Zealand. To help achieve this aim, the PRU aspires to undertake research that:

  • Promotes kaupapa Māori and Tiriti-based relationships for health equity in Aotearoa New Zealand
  • Informs the improvement of systems, policy, and practice within paramedicine and collaborating partners
  • Continually develops and strengthens paramedicine research capacity within Aotearoa New Zealand

Our research

The PRU focuses on, although not limited to, the following topic areas

  • Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA)
  • Acute coronary syndromes (ACS)
  • Community paramedicine (aging, health inequities)
  • Trauma
  • Stroke/Transient Ischaemic Attack (TIA)
  • EMS education
  • Antiracism in paramedicine

Contact us

Get in touch if you want to find out more about our research or would like to collaborate with us.

Email pru@aut.ac.nz