THINK Hauora's Here Toitū service recognises people's potential

E Ma Sin and his family. He has received help from Here Toitu, a programme that can support you to find and maintain meaningful work, study or volunteering. Photo / Supplied

E Ma Sin stands on the He Ara Kotahi bridge in Palmerston North surrounded by his family. It's been a long road to get to this point, having come to New Zealand eight years ago as former refugees.

Their journey has involved navigating health, housing and welfare systems completely new to them; a task made harder by not being able to advocate for themselves as they spoke no English.

That's where Here Toitū came in – a service delivered by THINK Hauora and the Ministry of Social Development.

The service is free and available to anyone who is experiencing challenges affecting their wellbeing. The team help people find meaningful employment, training or volunteering opportunities. They also provide early support for people who are in employment but facing challenges that could affect their ability to continue working.

Here Toitū kaimanaaki (health navigator) Erena Thompson began working with Sin and his family just after he left his job due to ill health.

"I couldn't focus on goals or aspirations outside of getting out of financial hardship before receiving support from Here Toitū," Sin says via an interpreter.

Thompson has supported the family while they navigated support services, providing interpreter support, sourcing food grants and accompanying Sin on medical appointments to ensure he was able to express himself in the way needed to be understood.

"I appreciate that my kaimanaaki is in the room with me when I am in these appointments. She always seems to understand just by looking at me what I need her support with to communicate to the service provider, which takes a lot of pressure and worry off me," Sin says.

With the support of Here Toitū, the Sin family have enrolled in English language classes, something that seemed impossible when they first arrived.

Here Toitū is a family-led programme, based on the family's goals and aspirations. The team includes kaimanaaki, MSD dedicated case managers and work retention specialists who work across Manawatū, Horowhenua, Ōtaki and Tararua. They can support families for 12 months to achieve their goals.

Louisa Smith is the Sin family's MSD dedicated case manager and has helped them transfer on to the correct benefit.

"I've been able to support Mr Sin onto a disability allowance and connect him with other agencies who can assist, such as Red Cross. We've also helped him access dental treatment for a condition that was having a real impact on his wellbeing," Smith says.

Here Toitū programme lead Sandra Wolters says it is not a one-size-fits-all programme: "Every individual we work with is unique, and so too is the support we can offer them."

Back at He Ara Kotahi, a location that symbolises the path of bringing people together as one, Sin sums up why Here Toitū is that little bit different.

"My kaimanaaki feels more like a family member. We are not judged, we are seen, we are heard and on the same level. We've never experienced anything like this before."

Find out more about Here Toitū and the support it can provide at thinkhauora.nz/here-toitu.