December 04, 2018
Mental health review fails Māori voices
MARIA BAKER INTERVIEW CLICK HERE
A Māori health advocate says a strong Māori voice is missing from the report of the inquiry into mental health and addiction.
Maria Baker, the chief executive of Māori health workforce development body Te Rau Matatini, says despite the presence on the review of Maori health experts Professor Sir Mason Durie and Dean Rangihuna, what Māori said during the consultation doesn’t come through in He Ara Oranga.
She says it’s not until page 206 that the possible establishment of a Māori health ministry or commission is raised, despite that being a strong call coming out of the consultation with Māori.
Māori want the authority and the resources to self-determine their own response to the health crisis affecting their people.
"If there’s going to be some radical change and improvement of our situation as whānau, hapū, iwi, the crown needs to speak directly with Māori. We cannot have a continual mechanism, go through mainstream to determine what the key recommendations and the actions for what needs to change for us to continue through the same authorities, same funding mechanisms and the rest of it. I don't think it's clear in this report that those radical changes need to happen," Mr Baker says.
Rather than rushing through a mediocre report, there should have been a full royal commission into Māori mental health services.
Copyright © 2018, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com