Page 23 - IB May 2021

Working together to increase the number of

Pacific and Māori midwives

National Pacific Lead, AUT’s Ngatepaeru Marsters, and National Māori Lead, AUT’s Teresa Krishnan.

Under a new government initiative, New Zealand’s five mid- National Māori Lead, AUT’s Teresa Krishnan, says, recruiting
wifery education providers will work together to support the suc- Māori and Pacific midwifery students is an important way to ad-
cess of Māori and Pasifika students and increase the number of dress these inequities.
midwives in our Pacific and Māori communities.
“We’re aiming to triple the number of Māori and quadruple the
Te Ara ō Hine for Māori and Tapu Ora for Pasifika will be de- number of Pacific undergraduate midwifery students year on year
veloped by Māori and Pacific midwifery educators, students, new for the next five years. We will then see them through to a success-
graduates and stakeholders from Auckland University of Technol- ful graduation. This generous funding enables us to continue our
ogy (AUT), Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington, mahi to achieve those outcomes.”
Otago Polytechnic, Ara Institute of Canterbury (Ara) and Waikato
National Pacific Lead, AUT’s Ngatepaeru Marsters, says, “Re-
Institute of Technology (Wintec). AUT holds the contract with the
search shows that a workforce which reflects its community re-
Ministry of Health and will have a memorandum of understanding
sults in a positive impact on outcomes. Each midwifery education
with the four other education providers.
school will develop their own regional strategy.”
The Ministry has provided $6 million in funding over the next
A nationwide recruitment drive for prospective students will
four years for a liaison person at each institution to provide wrap
run from April to December. Krishnan says, “We want Māori and
around care, academic support and to actively recruit Māori and
Pacific students thinking about a midwifery career to know they
Pacific students. There will also be a discretionary hardship fund
will be supported in their study to graduate and go on to a deeply
for students in need, and support to attend nationwide hui and fono
rewarding career that makes an overwhelming positive difference
for networking. An additional $370,000, which was contributed in
to whanau, communities and Aotearoa as a whole.”
2019 for Pacific midwifery and nursing undergraduate support, will
go towards this initiative. The Ara ō Hine - Tapu Ora aligns with Whakamaua, the Māori
Health Action Plan and Ola Manuia, the Pacific Health and Wellbe-
Te Ara ō Hine – Tapu Ora will help to address a serious shortage
ing 2020 – 2025 Action Plan. It was also one of the actions agreed
of Māori and Pasific midwives. Less than 10% of midwives iden-
to in the Midwifery Workforce Accord in 2019, which was to better
tify Māori as their first, second, or third ethnicity and less than 3%
support midwives in training, particularly Māori and Pacific.
as Pacific. Yet the population of women giving birth is 20% Māori
and 10% Pacific (rising to 27% in South Auckland).
Islands Business, May 2021 23