He Korowai Oranga: Māori Health Strategy

Full text online English version

Date of Publication: November 2002 This document is also available as full text online Māori version.

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Hon Annette King Minister of Health

Hon Tariana Turia Associate Minister of Health

About this strategy

He Korowai Oranga literally translated means "the cloak of wellness".

For Māori, this Māori Health Strategy symbolises the protective cloak and mana o te tangata - the cloak that embraces, develops and nurtures the people physically and spiritually. In the weaving, or raranga, of a korowai there are strands called whenu or aho.

In the strategy these represent all the different people who work together to make Māori healthy - including whānau, hapū and iwi, the health professionals, community workers, providers and hospitals. We need to weave the whenu/aho with all the diverse groups and combine these with our resources to form the different patterns of the korowai.

Contents

He Korowai Oranga: whānau ora

Emphasising whānau health and wellbeing
He Korowai Oranga: setting a new direction for Māori health
Improving Māori health and reducing inequalities
He Korowai Oranga: kaupapa
He Korowai Oranga: a living strategy
The structure

Directions

Direction One: Māori aspirations and contributions
Direction Two: Government aspirations and contributions

Three key threads

Rangatiratanga
Building on the gains
Reducing Inequalities

Pathways for action

Te Ara Tuatahi – Pathway One
Development of whānau, hapū, iwi and Māori communities

Fostering Māori community development
Building on Māori models of health
Removing barriers

Te Ara Tuarua – Pathway Two
Māori participation in the health and disability sector

Increasing Māori participation in decision-making
Increasing Māori provider capacity and capability
Developing the Māori health and disability workforce

Te Ara Tuatoru – Pathway Three
Effective health and disability services

Addressing health inequalities for Māori
Improving mainstream effectiveness
Providing highest-quality service
Improving Māori health information

Te Ara Tuawha – Pathway Four
Working across sectors

Encouraging initiatives with other sectors that positively affect whānau ora

Implementing He Korowai Oranga

Roles and responsibilities
Putting the strategy into action

Appendices

Appendix One: Sector reference and focus group
Appendix Two: Māori provisions in Act and strategies
Appendix Three: Māori health and disability provisions


Sources

Foreword

Tēnā koutou

Positive development of whānau, hapū and iwi contributes to a dynamic nation and the advancement of national wellbeing and wealth.

He Korowai Oranga places whānau at the centre of public policy. It challenges us to create environments that are liberating and enable whānau to shape and direct their own lives, to achieve the quality of life Māori are entitled to as tangata whenua in Aotearoa-New Zealand.

At the heart of He Korowai Oranga is the achievement of whānau ora, or healthy families. This requires an approach that recognises and builds on the integral strengths and assets of whānau, encouraging whānau development.

He Korowai Oranga provides a framework for the public sector to take responsibility for the part it plays in supporting the health status of whānau. This includes public policies that actively promote: whānau wellbeing, quality education, employment opportunities, suitable housing, safe working conditions, improvements in income and wealth, and addressing systemic barriers including institutional racism.

The Strategy requires the Crown and Treaty partners to work together in good faith. It also encourages all agencies and organisations involved in health to work together to create a system with defined processes and mechanisms to achieve improved outcomes. Such a system requires ongoing monitoring and evaluation to ensure that the interventions are achieving the desired outcomes for whānau.

The strategy supports tangata whenua-led development resulting in the achievement of tino rangitiratanga and ultimately the promise of a healthy nation.

Hon Annette King Minister of Health

Hon Tariana Turia Associate Minister of Health