Whānau Hauā: Reframing Disability From an Indigenous Perspective

Date
2017
Authors
Hickey, H
Wilson, DL
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga
Abstract

Mäori directly or indirectly experience disability at a higher rate than any other population group in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite one in three Mäori having some form of disability, Mäori have less access to support and health and disability services. Currently, gaps exist in knowledge related to Mäori and disability, and this is not helped by disabled Mäori being excluded from health and disability policy and service planning forums. With regard to disability frameworks, the medical model and the social model are the predominant northern hemisphere approaches to working with disabled persons. These models view disability in an individualised manner that is not relevant for many Indigenous disabled persons whose worldview is holistic, relational and collective in nature. In this paper, we critically examine current approaches to working with disabled Mäori and their experiences as Indigenous disabled persons before presenting Whänau Hauä as an alternative Indigenous approach to disability.

Description
Keywords
Disability , Health , Indigenous , Māori , Whānau hauā , Health and disability service access
Source
MAI Journal 2017: Volume 6 Issue 1
Rights statement
MAI Journal is an open access journal that publishes multidisciplinary peer-reviewed articles that critically analyse and address indigenous and Pacific issues in the context of Aotearoa New Zealand.