December 03, 2015
Durie thinks big on health
Maori health guru Professor Sir Mason Durie has called for cross-sector collaboration to improve Maori heath.
Outlining his Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) vision in Tauranga, he said while substantial gains have been made over the past 30 years, the next 30 years will require a fresh focus on the determinants of health.
That includes factors such as housing, poverty, and under-age drinking which affect health but are beyond the scope of the health system to address on its own.
Sir Mason says the three principal tenets of Pae Ora were Mauri ora (healthy lives) whanau ora (healthy families) and wai ora (healthy environments)
Mauri Ora is about flourishing: vitality, integrity, and energy, positive relationships in the wider environment – sometimes referred to as a 'life force'; whanau ora is about building whanau capability so that all whanau members can enjoy good health; and wai ora recognises that good health requires healthy environments, both natural and built.
Over the past 30 years Maori life expectancies have increased by eight years for both men (from 65 to 73) and women (from 69 to 77), but significant disparities remain in areas such as diabetes, most cancers, mental health issues and rheumatic fever.
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