June 11, 2024
Māori sick of one size fits all health policy
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Pacific health expert Sir Collin Tukuitonga says Māori and Pasifika will be left behind with the coalition Government’s one fit all approach to health.
Sir Collin, the University of Auckland medical school’s accociate dean Pacific and an associate professor for population health, quit as chair of Te Whatu Ora’s Pacific Senate in December because of his concern Pacific health needs were being sidelined.
He says taking culture out of health doesn’t work.
“It’s fine if you are middle class pakeha but it’s not good for certain groups and that’s why we need targeted support in terms of resources, in terms of information, a whole range of things. You’re not going to make the kind of impact you need to make in Maori and Pasifika communities if you are doing the same old same old because you will get the same old results,” he says.
Sir Collin has just been appointed to a World Health Organisation group to share knowledge on non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.