Working to promote Pacific health and wellbeing

Pacific Health logo of 3 interwoven traditional weaving bands and a red band in a star-like shape.Bula Vinaka, Fakaalofa lahi atu, Fakatalofa atu, Kia orana, Mālō e lelei, Mālō nī, Talofa lava and warm Pacific greetings.

There are about 14,000 Pacific people living in the Community and Public Health region (Canterbury, South Canterbury and the West Coast). This includes Pacific nations such as Samoa, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Niue, Fiji, Tokelau and Tuvalu.

Pacific communities are built around the churches and ethnic groups that play an important part in community life. Many Pacific people have barriers around accessing health information and health services. This is due to many issues such as language, health literacy, transport and finances.

Our Pacific Health Promoter strives to work across the areas of health and its social determinants that affect Pacific communities, especially financial concerns, smoking and housing issues. This includes acting as a link between the health system and Pacific ethnic communities.

Some examples of how Community and Public Health works with the Pacific community include:

  • Building awareness in Pacific communities to identify and respond to issues that affect their health.
  • Co-ordinating community health education seminars and programmes on identified issues.
  • Providing advice and culturally-appropriate information on issues that affect the health of local Pacific ethnic communities – in partnership with Pasifika health providers and Pegasus Health.
  • Acting as a point of reference for health agencies wishing to communicate with different Pacific communities.
  • Raising awareness for health professionals on Pacific cultural needs and perspectives.
  • Ongoing networking and consultation with the Pacific ethnic communities.
  • Working with local Pacific agencies and interagency groups such as Canterbury Pasifika Churches Network and the Christchurch City Council Multicultural Advisory Group.
  • Working collaboratively on relevant health issues with Pacific health organisations, the Pacific Caucus and the Integrated Respiratory Service Development Group (part of the Canterbury Clinical Network).

Community and Public Health also has a working group called Senibua that supports staff to implement effective action to improve Pacific health outcomes and reduce Pacific health inequities. This includes promoting Pacific Language Weeks during the year.

Ola Manuia: Driving better health outcomes for Pacific peoples

Beehive media release: 13th June 2020
A new action plan for Pacific people launched today by Associate Health Minister Jenny Salesa demonstrates the Government’s commitment to improve the health and wellbeing of our vibrant and growing Pacific population living in Aotearoa New Zealand.

“Ola Manuia – the Pacific Health and Wellbeing Action Plan for 2020-2025 is about driving more effective and equitable health outcomes for thousands of Pacific New Zealanders who call this country home,” Jenny Salesa says.

“New Zealand’s Pacific peoples make up a large portion of the country’s essential workers – especially in the health and disability workforce where they literally hold many of New Zealand’s most vulnerable people in their care. Yet they themselves remain consistently over-represented across all vulnerability indicators for health and wellbeing. These vulnerable groups are the people Ola Manuia aims to support.

“Achieving Pacific health equity is about addressing causes not just symptoms. It is about improving how Pacific people are treated when they access services and it is about getting the level of engagement, the quality of care and the modes of delivery, right.

“Ola Manuia highlights the range of factors that impact on Pacific peoples’ health and the need for more effective collaboration both within the health and disability system and across the health, housing, employment, education and social service sectors.

“The current inequities we see in Pacific health and wellbeing outcomes have no place in this country’s future. Ola Manuia challenges us to do things differently in order to realise the best outcomes for Pacific peoples and charts a key part of the course we must follow to achieve a more just, more equitable future together,” Jenny Salesa says.

Documents

Downloads

Download or order resources from the Community Health Information Centre. Some resources are available in several Pacific languages.

The Ministry of Health is no longer providing printed copies of some resources in Pacific languages.
Download and print Ministry of Health resources by Pacific language (HealthEd).

Links

For further information, contact:

Losana Korovulavula
Ph: +64 3 364 1777 or +64 21 794 701
Fax: +64 3 379 6125

Pacific health providers and services

Pacific Alcohol and Drug Helpline
0800 787 799

CANTERBURY
Pegasus Health
Ph: +64 3 379 1739

Etu Pasifika Health Clinic
Ph: +64 3 365 1002

Tangata Atumotu Trust
Ph: +64 3 940 5692

Vaka Tautua – Disability Information Advisory Services
Ph: +64 3 376 4677 or 0800 825 282

SOUTH CANTERBURY
Fale Pasifika O Aoraki
Ph: +64 3 687 7585

Pacifically Speaking from All Right?

This resource was specifically designed for Pacific fanau with primary school children. It is made up of two sets of cards:

  • the Pacifically Fun Stuff set describes a variety of activities for families to do together; and
  • the Pacifically Speaking set is made up conversation starters.

Pacifically Speaking resource (MNH0178).

O Luga o le Motu App launched

The Tino e Tasi Preschool in Christchurch, has broken barriers with the launch of a Samoan Language App produced in-house and with the direct participation of its own pre-schoolers!

Zohar Marshall of Tino e Tasi says the O Luga o le Motu App was produced by asking the three to four year-olds at the pre-school to draw a picture of a game they like to play on a tablet or phone at home.

The idea behind the App was to make learning a game and something the tamaiti would relate to. “The kids were at the centre of the project from the very start and it’s their ideas that drove it. It is interactive and has a real Sesame Street vibe. They just love it,” Zohar says.

Page last updated: 17/06/2020

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