Abano entered the orthotics market in October 2005, with the acqusiition of 70 percent of Orthotic Centre (NZ) Limited. The remaining 30 percent was acquired in October 2006.
The Orthotic Centre is New Zealand's foremost supplier of orthotic services and specialist products with locations in Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington. The company derives its income primarily from private sales, ACC and DHB contracts, with referrals from medical specialists, general practitioners and other health professionals. The Orthotic Centre has a manufacturing facility in Auckland which specialises in custom-made orthoses and orthotic footwear. As well as manufacturing for its own Clinical Services, the facility also provides a manufacturing base for other service providers throughout the country. The business is managed by Chief Executive Officer, Con Balasoglou, with the support office in Auckland providing a resource for all clinics around the country. The company has a Board of Directors, led by chairman Mr Denis Currie.
Musculoskeletal disorders, joint weakness, back problems, or the inability of any joint or muscle group to function correctly can greatly decrease an individual's quality of life and general mobility. These problems can be caused by congenital factors, traumatic injury, chronic conditions, sports injuries, or degenerative disease.
Orthotics is the design, fabrication, fitting and supervised use of devices that provide external support or assist weak or abnormal joints and/or muscle groups. In some instances, it is necessary to design and fabricate a custom orthosis for a specific need. In others, the orthotist custom fits an off-the-shelf device to the patient's dimensions, or incorporates additional components to achieve the desired results. An orthosis may be worn temporarily until a weakness or injury is overcome, or on a permanent basis to facilitate impaired function due to a congenital or degenerative condition.
The Orthotic Centre in Auckland is the only centre in New Zealand large enough to provide a service of world standard. For many years it has assumed responsibility for investment in education, research, the development of the service and the industry as a whole. It is committed to continuing this investment and to be a Centre of Excellence for Orthotic services throughout the Auckland region.
We employ orthotists, highly skilled technicians and support staff. Our orthotists are predominantly in a clinical role with exposure to a very wide variety of patient cases. Most of the fabrication of custom made orthoses are done by our team of technicians.
Recruitment
The Orthotic Centre is an accredited employee with the New Zealand Immigration Department. This allows us to recruit internationally without having to get prior approval and typically means a turnaround time for visas of two to four weeks rather than months. For successful international candidates we offer a wide variety of assistant packages for taking up positions in New Zealand, from airfare support, to freight contributions and sign-on bonuses.
Investment
The Orthotic Centre has made considerable investment in specialised plant and facilities. We carry stockholdings of prefabricated orthoses and raw materials, researched and sourced from around the world. This provides our orthotists with the widest range of clinical application options, and timely high quality service outcomes for clients. Our extensive investment in Cad-Cam technology assists in the management of a wide range of conditions including diabetes. We have a large inventory of specialised footwear lasts which allows prescription footwear to be provided to any client regardless of their condition.
To express your interest in working with Abano Rehabilitation’s Orthotics Team, or if you would like to be considered for any future positions, please send your full resume to our Human Resources Consultant:
Con Balasoglou
T: + 64 9 526 6774
E: conb@orthotics.co.nz
A: P O Box 11-203, Ellerslie, Auckland, New Zealand
