School of Public Health and Interdisciplinary Studies

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https://hdl.handle.net/10292/10764
The School of Public Health and Interdisciplinary Studies research institutes and centres play an important role in specialist teaching and research conducted by academic staff and postgraduate students. This places AUT students at the forefront of much of the ground-breaking research undertaken in New Zealand in the field of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Psychology, Psychotherapy and Counselling, and Public Health.

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    How Well Does Social Work Education in Aotearoa New Zealand Prepare Social Workers to Work With People Claiming Welfare Benefits and What Could Be Done Better?
    (Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers, 2024-04-21) Lessing, Charon; Russell, Alastair
    INTRODUCTION: In Aotearoa New Zealand these people have eligibility for a range of welfare benefit entitlements. The Aotearoa New Zealand welfare benefit system has been subject to neoliberal reform and is judgmental, monocultural, punitive and complex. Without advocacy support people are unlikely to access all of their welfare benefit entitlements. It is therefore essential that social workers are highly knowledgeable about the welfare benefit system. This article summarises initial exploratory research that asked the question – how well does social work education in Aotearoa New Zealand prepare social workers to work with people claiming welfare benefits? RESEARCH METHODS: The research used reflexive thematic analysis. The flexibility of this method allowed for a constructionist epistemology, a critical theoretical perspective and a critical ethnographic methodology. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with recent social work graduates. Each interview included realistic welfare benefit advocacy scenarios. FINDINGS: The data strongly indicated social work education curricula does not adequately address welfare benefit issues. Consequently social workers are unlikely to competently support people to access all their benefit entitlements. Furthermore, there is a significant gap in the literature regarding this issue. A poverty-aware paradigm and use of realistic welfare benefit advocacy scenarios within social work education is recommended.
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    Te Kupenga - Reflecting on the Purposeful Collection, Interpretation, and Stor(y)ing of Māori Women’s Knowledges
    (Journal of Indigenous Research, 2024-05-18) Heke, Deborah
    This paper provides a reflection on the methodology – Te Kupenga – after being presented at a number of international Indigenous conferences. It will explore the use of this intersecting methodology as a philosophical and practical approach to gathering, interpreting, and stor(y)ing mātauranga wahine (Māori women’s knowledges). The initial research project utilized this methodology and associated methods to come to understand the ways of being of physically active wāhine Māori and connect them to atua wāhine (feminine deities). The metaphor of the kupenga derives from both the structure and use of an open weave net, often used for fishing or gathering kai (food). Similarly, this research focused on the weaving together of three approaches (Whakapapa, Mana Wahine theory, and physical activity) to intentionally gather a particular type of Māori women’s knowledge. Te Kupenga weaves together Indigenous and non-Indigenous philosophies and methods – keeping what’s needed and allowing what’s not required to pass through the gaps in the weave. In this paper, I will consider and reflect on how this methodology was applied and how it evolved to become a mechanism that can inform the design and method of contemporary Indigenous research. Ultimately, this methodology and its methods allowed a way to gather the threads of wāhine identity, whakapapa (relationality), and mana (status). It enabled an illustration of the power and potential of wāhine – as active and sacred holders of the knowledge and blueprints of both ancestors and descendants.
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    Whakawhanaungatanga - Building Trust and Connections: A Qualitative Study Indigenous Māori Patients and Whānau (Extended Family Network) Hospital Experiences
    (Wiley, 2023-10-27) Komene, Ebony; Pene, Bobbie; Gerard, Debra; Parr, Jenny; Aspinall, Cath; Wilson, Denise
    AIMS: Investigated the experiences of Māori (the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa, New Zealand) patients and whānau (extended family network) engaging with acute hospital inpatient services and their priorities for a Māori-centred model of relational care. DESIGN: A qualitative Māori-centred research design using a Thought Space Wānanga (learning through in-depth group discussion, deliberation and consideration) approach. METHODS: Two wānanga were conducted between May 2022 and June 2022, with 13 Māori patients who had been acutely hospitalized within the past 12 months and their whānau members. The first wānanga utilized storytelling and journey mapping to collect data. The second wānanga refined the initial themes. Wānanga were audio-recorded and then inductively coded and developed into themes. RESULTS: Thirteen patients and whānau attended the first wānanga, while 10 patients and whānau participated in the second wānanga). Four themes were developed: (1) Whakawhanaungatanga (establishing connections and relationships), (2) Whakamana (uplifting the status and esteem of Māori), (3) Whakawhitiwhiti kōrero (the importance of communicating, discussing and deliberating) and (4) Kotahitanga (working together with purpose) all provide insights into the importance of effectively engaging and connecting with Māori patients and whānau when acutely hospitalized. CONCLUSIONS: The experiences and priorities of Māori patients and whānau affirm the international literature, suggesting that Indigenous relational concepts are critical to building relationships, connections and trust. Despite existing healthcare models for working with Indigenous peoples, their poor application contributes to sub-optimal healthcare experiences at all points of their healthcare journey. A relational mode of practice focused on engagement and forming connections better meets the needs of Indigenous peoples engaging with inpatient health services. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE: Despite the existence of Indigenous models of care, Indigenous peoples consistently report a lack of engagement and connection when accessing inpatient health services. Without establishing relationships, applying models of care is challenging. IMPACT (ADDRESSING): What problem did the study address? Internationally, healthcare systems are consistently ill-equipped to deliver culturally safe care for Indigenous and marginalized peoples, evident in ongoing health inequities. Like other reports of Indigenous experiences of health services, Māori express dissatisfaction with care delivery in an acute inpatient setting. This study investigated Māori patients and whānau experiences engaging with acute hospital inpatient services and their priorities for a Māori-centred model of relational care. What were the main findings? Māori patients and whānau recounted negative experiences with healthcare professionals lacking effective relationships and trust. Satisfaction occurred when engagement with health care professionals resembled Indigenous cultural rituals of encounter that considered their holistic, collective and dynamic worldviews. Previous models of relational care, while helpful, are not Indigenous and so do not address their needs, such as engagement as a mode of practice (how) to achieve this. Where and on whom will the research have an impact? This research impacts Indigenous peoples' health outcomes, particularly Māori, and nurses and clinicians working and interacting within acute inpatient and other hospital settings. Indigenous research methods support co-constructing knowledge for translation into practical outcomes through transformational practices, policies and theory development. REPORTING METHOD: We used the Consolidated Criteria for Strengthening the Reporting of Health Research Involving Indigenous Peoples (CONSIDER) statement (see File S2-CONSIDER Checklist) and the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) guidelines (see File S3-COREQ Checklist). PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Māori patients and their whānau interviewed about their experiences were involved in data interpretation.
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    Rapua te kurahuna: An Occupational Perspective of Internalised Oppression
    (SAGE Publications, 2023-11-24) Emery-Whittington, Isla; Davis, Georgina
    Internalised oppression can be tricky to recognise and hard to talk about. Described as the most devastating kind of racism, it remains poorly researched and understood. Nuanced and expansive ways of understanding internalised oppression are necessary for the work of being recognised and seeing each other as fully human. For many complex reasons, internalised oppression can be performed by targets of oppression in service of white supremacy, turning Indigenous spaces into new foci for racism via everyday occupations. This article outlines our critical examinations and steps to grapple with internalised oppression as Indigenous occupational therapists who observe how racism is transmitted in daily tasks of life. Steps include growing critical consciousness, developing a relational ethic of manaaki (to support, take care of, and give hospitality) and building community to support recognition and healing from internalised oppression. We call for the development of a critical ally workforce in solidarity with the racially targeted.
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    Reconnecting Māori in a Post-COVID-19 World: A Blessing in Disguise
    (SAGE, 2023-11-23) Wepa, D; Smith, R; Gemmell, L
    Connectedness for Māori (Indigenous people of New Zealand) is considered a protective factor that maintains hauora (good health) and contributes to holistic wellbeing. A scoping review of the literature was conducted to examine how Māori maintained connectedness during COVID-19. Key themes identified were the digital divide, cultural isolation and revival of traditional practices. Māori methodology and qualitative design involved 10 individual interviews and two hui (gatherings) face-to-face and online with members of Ngāti Kahungunu (an East Coast tribe descended from the eponymous ancestor Kahungunu) from New Zealand to explore how they maintained connectedness during COVID-19. Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis identified the following three themes: The digital divide, the pandemic seen as blessing in disguise and preventing marae (traditional meeting places) from becoming white elephants. The findings of this study will assist the community to develop a bigger project and implement protective factors to remain connected beyond physical space and place.
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