June 07, 2022
Racists triggered by Māori doctors
University Auckland medical school dean John Fraser says a story about Māori students being on the butt end of racist comments has triggered a fresh wave of racist hate mail.
Professor Fraser says one email claimed the medical school was producing half baked products – a reference to its Māori and Pasifika Admissions Scheme.
The reality is Pacific students have a 95 percent completion rate – the same as non-Māori students.
“They become exceptional doctors but they also carry with them the awareness of the health inequities within New Zealand, the difficulties Māori and Pacific communities face in our health workforce system. They have an attitude of wanting to make change which I think is laudable and our Māori and Pacific cohorts are our most valuable asset,” Professor Fraser says.
There is a massive shortage of Māori doctors in New Zealand with Māori making up 18 percent of the population but only 5 percent of doctors and the numbers are even worse for Pacific.
The Vision 20/20 Māori recruitment programme means 18 percent of graduates are now Māori but it is going to take many decades before the percentage of Māori doctors matches the Māori population.