A new report from Te Tāhū Hauora Health Quality & Safety Commission has exposed deep and ongoing inequities in Aotearoa’s health system, with Māori and Pacific disabled people among those most at risk of harm.
The findings point to systemic failures across health services, including gaps in data, poor access to care and unequal treatment for disabled communities. But advocates say the issue is not just about statistics.
The March 2025 case of an 11-year-old non-verbal Māori autistic child, who was misidentified, restrained and mistreated, has brought those failures into sharp focus.
Associate Professor Bernadette Jones says the case shows how racism and ableism can combine inside the health system, leaving Māori disabled tamariki vulnerable to serious harm.
She says disabled people, including Māori and Pacific disabled communities, must be recognised as experts in their own lives and included in decisions about the services designed for them.
The report highlights major gaps in health data, but the treatment of the child shows how those gaps can translate into real-world consequences when systems fail to understand identity, disability and cultural safety.
Advocates are calling for urgent action from Health NZ and the Ministry of Health, including stronger safeguards for disabled children, better staff training, improved identification processes and genuine partnership with Māori and Pacific disabled communities.
They say preventing future harm means listening directly to disabled whānau, resourcing culturally safe care and confronting the structural racism and ableism embedded across the health system.
For whānau Māori, the message is clear: disabled tamariki deserve dignity, safety and care that recognises the fullness of who they are.
