April 03, 2024
Name switch as Māori health mahi continues
More than 300 kaimahi working for Te Aka Whai Ora have been formally welcomed back into Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand.
A powhiri at Pipitea Marae in Wellington yesterday marked the next stage in the disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority.
Its former chief medical officer of health, Dr Rawiri McKree Jansen, says staff have been working on putting contracts in place for the 188 Māori programme providers.
“They need certainty and there’s a whole lot of work we are doing in the health workforce that needs to continue and there are a whole lot of programmes – immunisation is a good example – but on top of that there’s a whole lot of work we’re doing in cancer care – Te Aka Whai Ora teams inside Te Whatu Ora have this opportunity to really push hard around cancer,” he says.
Dr Jansen says it’s too early to tell whether any positions will go part of the Government’s public service budget cuts.