June 26, 2020
Mental health system resists Māori input
The chair of the Initial Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission says the mental health system is resisting moves to create more equity for Māori.
The commission has released a progress report on how the Government is responding to He Ara Oranga, the inquiry into mental health and addiction.
Hayden Wano says the score card is fairly positive, with 38 of the report’s 40 recommendations being adopted or partly adopted.
But there are areas the system seems resistant to change, which is why his roopu wants to see a stronger focus on equity and grounding the system in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
"We know that there’s legislation that is enshrined in a number of crown entities and so on and we also know we've had policies for some time that relate to improving equity for Māori but somehow there is a stubbornness and an unyielding approach from the system to be able to address those things so we think that there needs to be a more meaningful approach to Te Tiriti o Waitangi," Mr Wano says..
He says there is a growing call for people with lived experience of mental health and addiction to be involved at an early stage in designing services.
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