“But he wasn’t well enough to do the mahi that he used to do before,” says Lisa.
Lisa met Tony at Poutiri Wellness Centre’s Koeke programme, which provides injury prevention and recovery care.
“I introduced the new service and since then I have been working with Matua Tony.
“We’ve been going through a very lengthy process gathering medical evidence and working with an ACC specialist to identify whether his current state with ongoing back problems is due to the brucellosis.
“For quite some time, Matua hasn’t been supported with the challenges he has faced due to his injury. Having to deal with the injury over such a long period of time and not having the support to get well has contributed to more injuries and challenges.”
Those challenges were both physical and mental.
Three weeks ago, Tony received an email to say his claim had been accepted.
Tony says the service has been “brilliant”.
“If it wasn’t for Lisa and doctor Tim [Chiari] and others here [at Poutiri], I’d be depressed as. I’ve had a hard time. I can’t say enough about Lisa .”
Tony admits he wasn’t overly confident in being successful.
The ACC navigation service is open to anyone who is going through an ACC process.
“You can reach out, whether it’s just a question, whether or you’ve just had an accident and you don’t know what to do or you have had a claim declined and want the decision reviewed.
This is a free service for the community of Te Puke and surrounding areas. This service is also available nationwide via other Māori health providers.
The starting point for most cases, says Lisa, is whakawhanaungatanga (the process of establishing good relations)
“I sit with the whānau and listen — I don’t like to call them clients, I like to call them whānau — so we listen to whānau, we listen to their challenges we get a whole picture of what’s happened to them with their injury.
“That part is fundamental and as Māori it is how we connect, through kōrero, listening and understanding, I find it’s something that is missing a lot of the time.
When you get to sit with a person you get to understand what’s really going on and you get the full picture of their challenges. You see from a holistic perspective all the pieces that have contributed to their current injuries and challenges, not just from a clinical standpoint but from a social, spiritual, physical and emotional aspect.
“That gives you a better understanding of whether or not there is a possibility that their claim is one we should explore more.”
Lisa never makes any promises.
“At the end of the day, if the investigations are done thoroughly and the voice of the whānau is heard — then whatever is to be will be at the end of it.”
Lisa can look at all the information that has been provided to ACC and check that everything aligns with what the whānau have experienced
“If there is something that hasn’t been provided accurately to ACC then I can endeavour to investigate and enquire for more information to support the whānau with their claim.”
Not every case will have a positive outcome.
“But the majority of my complex cases since I started this role have taken a really good positive turn.”
Lisa can also accompany whānau when they have an assessment and provide them with explanations.
She says the medical terms can be overwhelming for people.
“They say ‘I don’t know what they are talking about’ so I can help to explain ‘this is what this means and this is what that means’ and provide some clarity and understanding for the whānau.
Tony has slept in a La-Z-Boy or on a couch for much of the past 39 years, as it was the only way he could sleep, and his wife Maree has taken on extra work.
“It’s been a hard life for us all.”
Now his claim has been accepted, he says his first request will be an electric bed.
“The only time I have a good sleep is when I’m in hospital where they have them.”
“Now we’ve got cover accepted, the final part is to make sure that Matua has everything he needs to manage his injury including a suitable bed and hopefully he will sleep much better at night,” says Lisa.
“He can also access any treatment and if he needs another specialist assessment on his spine at all, ACC have got that covered now which is great.”
