My role as Stephen Gilbert's Plastic Surgical Nurse is to provide a smooth and safe environment for all our patients and to guide them through the pre and post operative management of surgical procedures. At NZIPCS our focus is on being a part of a skilled and professional team aimed at ensuring that our patients enjoy the highest standards of safety and expertise.

I am available to see patients for initial informal discussions about aesthetic surgery and then to coordinate consultations with Mr Gilbert and our appearance medicine team where appropriate.

I have been a registered nurse since 1973 with a post graduate course in operating theatre nursing. This was the main focus of my career for many years during which time I learned a variety of specialties. I developed a keen interest in plastic surgery and have been involved in this field for the past twenty five years.

My professional expertise and skills in this speciality have been further developed through frequent attendance at scientific meetings in the USA, Australia and New Zealand. I now take an active role in convening the Annual Plastic Nurses Symposium held in Auckland which is attended by plastic surgery nurses from throughout Australasia

I have been surgical assistant to Mr Stephen Gilbert for twenty years and hold the key role of Patient Coordinator for Mr Gilbert here at the New Zealand Institute of Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery.

Email Karen Baker

I have been a member of the NZIPCS team since 2000. My role includes pre and post-operative planning of Mr Janek Januszkiewicz’s patients, nursing consultations and post-operative wound care. My aim is to help create a positive surgical experience for our clients.

Since qualifying as a Registered Nurse in 1991, I have specialised in the plastic and reconstructive area. I worked for five years in Middlemore Hospital Plastic Surgical and Burns Unit and have completed the Plastic Surgical nurses course which is exclusive to Middlemore Hospital staff. My career has taken me to Australia and the United Kingdom where I continued my work in Plastic Surgery. Upon returning to New Zealand, I completed my degree in Nursing and was a foundation member of Ascot Integrated Hospital where I was the Resource Advisor for Plastic Surgery.

Email Karen Coubray

As a Patient Coordinator, I am responsible for coordinating the management plan for each patient, prior to surgery and following consultation with the surgeon. Our main concern is patient safety and ensuring the patient is fully informed/educated with regard to the surgical procedure being undertaken. It is rewarding to be making a contribution to such a positive field of surgery, where such a difference can be made to patients lives.

I joined the NZPICS in 2006, following a 6 year period working in a Plastic Surgical/Orthopaedic ward at Ascot Integrated Hospital. I graduated from Waikato Polytechnic in 1993 and have worked in New Zealand and the UK a wide variety of roles including General Practice, Neurosurgical ICU and a variety of public, private and homecare settings.

As well as nursing, I also hold a Diploma in Beauty Therapy and I’m a member of the Auckland Beauty Therapy Committee. The combination of nursing and beauty therapy skills has been a valuable contribution to my current practice.

Email Kate Hunter

My role within the team is that of theatre coordinator, this means that I am responsible for the smooth running of the theatres, namely ensuring that all personnel and equipment are present and in working order. My background means that I can fill any role within the team but normally I perform the duties of anaesthetic assistant and recovery nurse.

After completing my nursing training I specialised in ophthalmic nursing, working at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, England. I also took the opportunity to travel with a flying eye hospital charity and teach nursing & surgical skills in many different countries, including Bhopal in India. At the time many people were trying to cope with the devastating after effects of the American Union Carbide chemical plant explosion which killed and injured thousands in the early 1980’s.

I returned to Oxford to work in a specialist head and neck hospital, this incorporated ophthalmology and plastic surgery along with neurosurgery and ear, nose and throat. I undertook a postgraduate nursing degree, specialising in theatre nursing care and continued to learn new skills, including anaesthesia nursing and recovery.

Moving to New Zealand has been a great challenge and has given me the opportunity to work in a highly stimulating field within an exceptionally skilled team at NZIPCS

I believe that a happy team delivers great results because we have the utmost confidence in each other. Having been exposed to many different healthcare systems and having worked in the public and private sectors I believe that first class care takes a united team effort and it is our clients who reap the results.

I have worked in the operating theatre at 243 Surgical Centre for the last 11 years on a part – time basis after having a break to raise my family. Prior to that I worked with plastic surgeons in Christchurch and with Stephen Gilbert at Gillies Hospital in Epsom, which makes my association of working with him to be approximately 25 years standing.

At 243 Surgical Centre I fulfil the roles of both scrub and circulating nurse and work very hard behind the scenes to ensure that all proceeds smoothly. I recently have ventured into the role of post operative dressing nurse which has given me a broader perspective of the wound healing process and has helped in my decision making in the theatre.

Having worked with Stephen Gilbert earlier in my career, I jumped at the chance to join the team at NZIPCS and 243 Surgical Centre. Working in the theatre and recovery areas I enjoy seeing patients before, during and after their surgery, and the changes both physically and psychologically it makes. The team here is experienced and friendly with a high focus on patient safety and satisfaction.

My interest in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery began in 1980 as a Staff Nurse in the Plastic Surgical Operating Theatres at Middlemore Hospital. In 1983, I furthered my knowledge and understanding of Plastic Surgery by completing the Post Graduate Course in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Middlemore Hospital.

I have since gained an extensive Plastic Surgical experience in the Public and Private sectors including charge nurse and hospital leadership roles in plastic surgery operating and nursing. From this experience I have gained knowledge in a wide range of reconstructive and aesthetic procedures.