Mataku Ariki from Patua Te Taniwha Charitable Trust. Photo / Andrew Warner
When Mataku Ariki's father committed suicide, the ripple effects led to her own mental health battle.
"I ended up getting a lot of online support but it got to a point where I needed physical support and that's when I realised there wasn't a lot."
She believed there was a gap in Māori mental health services so Ariki was prompted to tackle the issue through a Māori world view and helped establish Patua Te Taniwha Charitable Trust.
The trust aims to raise suicide awareness through five community events each year and promote whānau connections to address mental health head-on.
"The main point is to raise the awareness, stop the silence and stigma and just normalise talking about mental health and suicide, wellbeing so whānau know it's okay not to be okay, It's okay to talk and express how you're feeling."
The trust also runs a fortnightly bereavement support group called Kapu Ti Korero which, in the lead up to Mental Health Awareness Week, Ariki said was reaching more people every time.
"That tells us what we're trying to do is needed and to keep going. Even if we can help one person it's worth it."
The trust isn't the only one tackling mental health through a kaupapa Māori lens. And it's for a good reason.
Māori are disproportionately represented in mental health and suicide figures.
The annual provisional suicide figures released by the chief coroner last month showed 654 people died by suicide last year, including 14 in the Lakes District Health Board area.
The figure was the lowest it had been in three years, but of those, 24 per cent, or 157, were Māori.
According to Ministry of Health statistics, 34.7 per cent of people in the Lakes District Health Board area are of Māori descent. This compares with 15.7 per cent nationwide.
With a high Māori population in its district, the health board takes a kaupapa approach to mental health.
Manawa Ora is a cultural and navigational community service which provides specialised cultural support with a tikanga Māori approach.
The health board also has a Māori health team with roles including providing advice to the board to contribute to improved health outcomes for Māori and developing and maintaining relationships with iwi governance groups and with Māori communities.
Looking at mental health figures, Dr Simon Bennett, Massey University director of clinical psychology, said it was important to take into account systemic issues that could affect them, such as accessibility, unconscious bias and systemic racism.
He said it was important to have a range of options for services available to Māori consumers.
"One of the strengths of a kaupapa Māori approach is it shifts the narrative from a cultural deficit to the strength that can be drawn from cultural values."
That's where places like Patua Te Taniwha Charitable Trust come in and Tuwharetoa Health Charitable Trust.
Tuwharetoa Trust chief executive Willow Salvador also has experience with mental health - 14 years ago her sister committed suicide.
The experience instilled in her a desire to find mental health solutions to ensure no other family would have to go through the same heartbreak.
The trust is a kaupapa Māori provider which provides primary health care services for all in the Ngāti Tūwharetoa area.
"We feel we're best to support people in our rohe and together we can lobby to find a solution for whānau and community."
Ultimately though, Salvador wants to ensure people don't need help from external providers.
"The outcome we want is for whānau to be able to self manage their own wellness to be able to find their mauri ora, their hauora.
"We need to ensure we're providing all the tools and information for whānau so they are able to navigate that journey for themselves and not have to rely upon an external service."
Bennett believes a kaupapa Māori approach can resonate more with Māori clients but addressing disparities isn't easy.
"It starts with acknowledging there's an issue ... recognise it's not a level playing field for Māori consumers of mental health services.
"There are disadvantages there and not everyone starts from the same point."
He said getting more Māori working in the field of mental health and ensuring other approaches were not marginalised or considered lesser would help.
"[At Massey University] we've made big steps to ensure our students are well-equipped to be able to work with Māori whānau and find solutions drawn on Māori values.
"It's important to have a range of options available to Māori consumers. Some areas are in a strong position to be able to provide Māori solutions but there are others where Māori mental health services are not as well resourced."
A Ministry of Health spokesperson said the Government had committed $1.9 billion to "diverse initiatives to enhance mental wellbeing".
"In transforming the mental health and addiction system, it is recognised that better outcomes for Māori are essential, and services must be designed in partnership with Māori."
The work includes expanding and developing kaupapa Māori and whānau-centred models, targeted funding for workforce development to ensure there are kaupapa Māori providers and discussions around the design of new community-based services.
The Ministry is also assessing proposals targeted at increasing services for Māori with a focus on expanding or replicating existing kaupapa Māori primary mental health and addiction services.
It has scholarships available to increase and develop the Māori health workforce.
Kaupapa Māori programmes and approaches in the Bay of Plenty
Included but not limited to:
• Te Puna Hauora - a service provider for everyone from age 4 to adults which encourages families to support and pursue their own whanau ora plans.
• Te Manu Toroa Trust which provides kaupapa primary health services in Tauranga.
• Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Pikiao Trust which provides whānau-centred services.
WHERE TO GET HELP:
• Lifeline: 0800 543 354 (available 24/7)
• Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO) (available 24/7)
• Youth services: (06) 3555 906
• Youthline: 0800 376 633
• Kidsline: 0800 543 754 (available 24/7)
• Whatsup: 0800 942 8787 (1pm to 11pm)
• Depression helpline: 0800 111 757 (available 24/7)
• Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155
• Helpline: 1737
• Anxiety Helpline: 0800 ANXIETY (0800 269 4389)
If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
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