Building better future for pepi, tamariki

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

A more holistic approach to better support young hapū māmā and their whānau in te Tairāwhiti got under way this week.

The Tamariki Ora – E Tipu E Rea pilot is an enhanced Well Child Tamariki Ora service provided by Tūranga Health and Ngāti Porou Hauora, facilitated by Hauora Tairāwhiti district health board and funded by the Ministry of Health.

E Tipu E Rea tailors a wrap-around service for young whānau in Tairāwhiti aged 25 years and under with pēpi/tamaiti up to two years old.

The service looks at the bigger picture of health and safety for whānau so they have support that is more flexible and a referral pathway into specialist services if needed.

“Nau te rourou, Naku te rourou, Ka ora ai te iwi,” Ngāti Porou Hauora chief executive Rose Kahaki said.

“We liken this pilot to this well-known proverb ‘with your basket and my basket, the people will prosper’ — whānau and kaimahi working together to build better futures for our pēpi and tamariki.”

Tūranga Health chief executive Reweti Ropiha says the pilot is a good fit with their existing services.

“This programme provides us with the opportunity to spend more time and resource supporting whānau.”

Tūranga Health and Ngāti Porou Hauora reach across the length and breadth of Te Tairāwhiti into rural, remote and urban communities; and are well placed to provide this integrated style of support.

Both providers have delivery experience in general practices, registered nurses (in both clinics and mobile), mental health and addictions (primary and secondary), maternity, Whānau Ora, and standard tamariki ora services.