Milestone for Iwi Māori Partnership Boards
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Iwi Māori Partnership Boards have taken a major step as part of the Government’s commitment to the health of Māori communities.
Minister Reti has now received 15 IMPB community health plans, representing the vision and plans of the boards for health and wellbeing in communities throughout New Zealand.
“Receiving these plans is a hugely significant milestone in implementing my long-term vision for Māori health,” says Dr Reti.
“Having all 15 recognised IMPBs on board with their planning marks a pivotal step in ensuring health services identify and act on the actual needs and priorities of Māori communities.
“Development of the plans not only underscores the professionalism of the IMPBs in delivering them, but the content will also align and inform around key Government health targets, and in ensuring a Māori voice is heard in health.
“These are localised rather than bureaucratised plans, providing crucial insights into health priorities for actual populations. From here, they will also ensure local voices are heard and integrated into our broader health strategy
“These plans are not just documents. they are living frameworks to guide our efforts to better address specific health challenges faced by Māori communities.
“Their prioritisation of local needs means agencies can take meaningful steps towards reducing actual health inequities. Through engagement with local whānau, IMPBs have been able to identify specific priorities and actions in addition to the Government’s overarching health targets.
“Examples of these priorities include access to oral health care, suicide prevention and growing the Māori health workforce.
“The Ministry of Health – Manatū Hauora, Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora and Iwi Māori Partnership Boards will now work cohesively to finalise the plans, support the relevant IMPBs, and begin implementation over the next three to five years.
“The plans will become the base for IMPBs being able to act on their strategic commissioning role, however it remains important to recognise that each IMPB is currently at a different level of capacity for delivery.
“This year’s 2024/25 budget increase of an additional $40 million per annum through Health NZ will contribute to addressing hauora Māori provider inflation pressures and continued service provision to Māori communities.
“I look forward to the positive impact these plans will have on the health priorities of Māori communities and the ongoing collaboration with all stakeholders to achieve our shared goals,” Dr Reti says.
Once finalised, the Community Health Plans will be published on the IMPB and Health New Zealand websites.
Original Article posted on the Beehive Website: https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/milestone-iwi-m%C4%81ori-partnership-boards
Annual Report 2024
This year’s report reflects our dedication to collaborative leadership and our mission to uphold tino rangatiratanga and amplify whānau voices at the decision-making table that has been strengthened through partnerships with Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand and through the collective leadership of our Iwi Māori Partnership Boards (IMPBs).
This report captures the progress we have made, milestones achieved the lessons we have learned, and the path forward. This progress strengthens our shared commitment to uplifting the health and wellbeing of Māori in our rohe and ensuring all whānau can access services that reflect their needs and aspirations.
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
Whānau Voice - Issue 1
The Whānau Voice Report compiles insights from whānau, hapū, and iwi within our IMPB area, along with feedback from Hauora Māori service providers. This collaborative effort aims to capture the experiences, views, and health needs of whānau, informing the Te Taura Ora o Waiariki IMPB ‘Hauora Māori Priorities Report’ (HMPR). Supported by Te Whatu Ora, we also engaged with various mainstream providers to gather this valuable information.
The report therefore presents data from meetings and hui held in 2024, with both mainstream and Hauora Māori providers. Feedback from these gatherings, along with insights from hapū and community events and other hui, was analysed to explore broader health service experiences.
Through thematic analysis, we identified key issues such as access, cost, and cultural barriers. Specific participant quotes enrich the report, highlighting the voices of whānau and guiding intentional actions to improve health services.
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
We need a significantly scaled-up Māori health workforce
Lauren James is co-chair of Te Taura Ora o Waiariki IMPB, the legislated Iwi Māori Partnership Board for the Rotorua area.
OPINION: It’s clear that our health system is in crisis, and Māori will feel the impact more than other parts of the population.
Māori experience a stark health disparity, with an average lifespan seven years shorter than non-Māori; face a cardiovascular disease death rate twice as high; see their tamariki suffering a mortality rate one-and-a-half times that of non-Māori children; and are disproportionately diagnosed and die from cancer.
The evidence tells us that high need and Māori sit hand in hand in this country. The current status quo doesn’t work for us; quite the contrary, it kills us!
Iwi Māori Partnership Boards (IMPBs) were stood up as part of the government response to Wai 2575 (Waitangi Tribunal Health Services and Outcomes Inquiry) and the Simpson Report (Health and Disability System Review), to address the glaring disparities that Maori faced in health and wellbeing.
Yet while the intent of the Government for these IMPBs and now disestablished Te Aka Whai Ora (Māori Health Authority) was honourable, the execution was poor. The entities’ efforts have been underfunded, under-resourced, and burdened by unrealistic expectations.
The resourcing for IMPBs felt like little more than tokenism at best, and blatant inequity at worst – yet two years since our establishment, and despite a change in government, we remain standing.
Not only are we still here, but against all odds, IMPBs have created Community Health Plans that reflect our most cherished taonga—the voices of our whānau and locality data.
They are boldly advocating for long-term, evergreen contracts to sustain our backbone of Māori health providers, striving to strike a principled balance between the needs of our people and the demands of government. I believe both can be achieved.
We are flexible, agile, and ready to challenge the system, pushing for bold, innovative solutions that prioritise social value over financial gain.
IMPBs are only a small part of the health system, but like all good things that come in tiny packages, we are dynamic, explosive and already punching well above our weight.
We should be encouraged by what our 15 IMPBs have achieved in record time. Minister Reti set a deadline in July for our plans, and most of them have been delivered. Now we wait for the official response.
Currently our Māori health providers’ contracts have been rolled over to June next year only, experiencing their own budget forecasting uncertainty in the context of a billion-dollar deficit in Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand.
Advocating for greater investment in Māori health providers is critical, especially when it’s claimed that Māori prefer mainstream providers. How can we speak of choice when only 2% of health funding goes to Māori providers, yet the demand by our people is massive? This minimal investment strips people of genuine choice, leaving them with few alternatives in the care they can access.
Some, like our whaikaha (disabled) whānau, are particularly underserved as seen in the evidence filed in Wai 2575. This is due to the way the system allocates contracts to the huge players who dominate procurement, which perpetuates ongoing inequity.
We need a significantly scaled-up Māori health workforce – our doctors, nurses, midwives, lead maternity carers, allied health professionals, non-clinical staff, and even the cleaners – everyone who serves our communities. We need more of them, and we need them now.
What sets IMPBs apart is our accountability to whānau, hapū, iwi, and communities; we serve them first and foremost. Their voices make it clear: we can’t afford to wait for the system to change, especially when whānau pass away while waiting in emergency departments.
This reality shows us that the system is in crisis. As we’re continually reminded of the health system’s financial struggles, let’s not forget that health should never be about profit; it must be about people and whānau. We recognise that we can’t do this alone, but being comfortable to share safe space together and have honest conversations about what we can all do better is a great place to start.
IMPBs across the country are eager to engage in conversations with all branches of government, from health to housing. We understand that health alone cannot deliver the answers to whānau wellbeing. Let us unite to strengthen whānau, hapū, iwi, and communities together.
Original Article posted on the Sunday StarTimes: https://www.thepost.co.nz/wellbeing/350447368/we-need-significantly-scaled-maori-health-workforce
Health Profile - Volume 2
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
Health Profile - Volume 1
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
History of Māori Health Planning
This is a position paper that documents the development and implementation of Māori health plans over the past 40 years.
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
Community Health Plan
Our Community Health Plan was submitted by our IMPB on 30 September 2024 in readiness to commence the formalised role as strategic commissioners from January 2025. Our Community Health Plan describes the work undertaken to date to stand up the core functions of our IMPB namely – Operations, commencing Community and Whānau Engagement , Data Analytics, and Planning. As we continue to “power up” to meet our legislated responsibilities under the Pae Ora Act 2022, we have developed a 3 Year Workplan 2025 -2027 that will see us continue our engagement with whānau in our rohe and will also focus on – Service development and planning; Strategic procurement; Innovation; Policy Development; System improvement; Partnerships; Local intelligence and monitoring.
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”
Hauora Māori Priorities Summary Report
Our Hauora Māori Priorities Report is an initial step towards understanding the current state of health services and whānau experiences of health service delivery in our rohe. Our Board met together in a full day workshop to work through the findings of the analysis and to determine priorities, guided by the voices of whānau captured in the report. This is work that we will continue to repeat over time as the data from the health system improves, and as we continue to gather specific whānau voice information about the health system. To drive health system change, our role is to utilise and share our Hauora Māori Priorities Reports to collaborate with Te Whatu Ora | Health NZ to address the priorities for Hauora Māori as we work toward achieving high quality community led culturally responsive health care in Te Taura Ora o Waiariki rohe. Key mechanisms for recognition of our priorities are a) embedding the IMPB priorities in the Regional Health and Wellness Plan for Te Manawa Taki as this drives the regional work programme of leaders and their teams within Te Whatu Ora | Health NZ and b) working together at regular session such as the monthly Regional Integration Team (RIT) hui, which involves senior leaders responsible for key parts of the system, noting IMPB Executives are active participants in these working sessions.
To download the PDF, click on the three dots ⋯ and select “Download PDF File.”