M Ā O R I   H E A L T H   D I R E C T O R A T E

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Our Working Relationships

Our working relationships encompass a very wide range of stakeholders and interested groups. In addition to the Minister and Associate Minister of Health, we also maintain working relationships within the public sector, including:

Other Ministry of Health Directorates

We maintain close working relationships with other directorates within the Ministry of Health, and the Māori Managers operating for and behalf of Māori within the other directorates.

Other Ministries

There are other key Ministries with whom we liaise and consult, and to whom we provide advice. Included among these are the Ministries of Social Development, Education, Youth Affairs, Women's Affairs and Māori Development, Te Puni Kokiri.

District Health Boards

With the District Health Boards we maintain close working relationships with the Whakatataka forum, (the CEOs representatives of the DHBs), Tumu Whakarae (the senior Māori managers of the DHBs) and Matawhanui (the DHB Māori Board members) whom we meet with three times a year.

Primary Health Organisations

In 2002 the first Primary Health Organisations were established to take responsibility for the health of enrolled populations under the primary health care strategy by improving access to primary health care. The Māori health and disability providers joining primary health organisations are also important in our arena of responsibility and to this end we meet regularly with the Māori PHO Advisory Group.

We also maintain relationships with international and indigenous groups, and in the broader Aotearoa community, we are charged with monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the Māori Health organisations and services they provide. These include:

whānau, hapū, iwi and Māori Communities

By these we mean Māori organizations and groups that represent tangata whenua – whānau, hapū, iwi.

whānau (family/extended family) and hapū (sub-tribes) share whakapapa ties and seek to promote the social, economic and cultural wellbeing of their kin. hapū organise themselves in a range of formal and informal ways. hapū identity is recognised by hapū and iwi interests and expectations are often closely aligned with those of their iwi. The iwi governance body usually represents whānau and hapū. There are also formal entities, like Marae Committees for example, which might represent whānau and hapū interests.

Communities of Interest

There are Māori groups and organisations that represent specific communities of interest, which are not iwi-based, for example local Māori sporting groups. There are also Māori organisations representing the specific interests of segments of the Māori population, for example, Māori Women's Welfare League.

Māori health and disability organisations

There are a number of significant Māori health related organisations, and there are collectives of Māori health practitioners. Included among these are Te Kaunihera ō NgāNeehi Māori ō Aotearoa (National Council of Māori Nurses), NgāMaia (Māori Midwives), Te Ohu Rata ō Aotearoa (Māori Medical Practitioners), and Taeora Tinana (Māori Physiotherapists), and Te Ao Marama (Māori Dentists Association) to name just a few. Also included in the broad group of Māori health and disability organisations are the Māori Health Research Units within universities throughout Aotearoa and workforce development organisations like Hauora.com (Māori health workforce organisation), and Te Rau Matatini (Māori mental health workforce).

Māori health and disability providers

Māori health and disability providers deliver services that target Māori communities or clients. They are also delivering services to the wider population and may also be delivering other social services like housing, budgeting, legal and environmental quality consultancy. The service provider is led by a Māori governance and management structure and expresses a Māori kaupapa (vision or purpose). Māori health providers tend to incorporate consideration of the wider issues of Māori development and these might apply to their own organisations. Our role in relation to Māori providers is to encourage innovative and more effective approaches to specific health and disability issues.

A large number of Māori health and disability providers are also affiliated to MAPOs and MDOs.

MAPOs (Māori Co-Purchasing Organisations)

The Northern Regional Health Authority established MAPOs as partnership relationships to take responsibility for planning and purchasing health and disability services for all Māori in their respective regions.

Their functions include increasing Māori capacity and capability, provider and workforce development, and assisting mainstream organisations to service Māori more effectively. There are three MAPOs based on the iwi groupings of Te Tai Tokerau, Ngāti Whatua and Tainui (southern Auckland area).

Māori Development Organisations

Māori Development Organisations were set up to assist in strengthening the Māori health and disability sector. Their emphasis is on better integration and co-ordination of care and assisting Māori provider development. Today they are responsible for direction and guidance of the providers within their network, providing strategic planning, quality and business management expertise. Māori Development Organisations have their own association - Te Matarau and they have their own relationships with iwi.

There are currently six Māori Development Organisations. They are He Oranga Pounamu (Christchurch) Poumanawa Oranga (Blenheim) Taumata Hauora, (Whanganui) Tui Ora Ltd (New Plymouth) Te Roopu Huihuinga Hauora Inc, (Hastings) and Poutiri Trust, Te Puke.



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