BOPDHB History Tauranga Hospital Centennial Book | Page 29

The Kaupapa Ward
Ward 2A at Tauranga Hospital is the Kaupapa Ward,
established in 1990 to meet the clinical and cultural
needs of Māori patients. It is an acute ward for medical,
respiratory, diabetes and cardiac care.
Tauranga Hospital is the only hospital in New Zealand with
a dedicated Medical Kaupapa Ward and includes Kaupapa
Nursing Mental Health Service, Kaupapa Social Work
Service and Kaupapa Nursing Community Service.
The Kaupapa Ward has staff trained in basic Te Reo,
tikanga best practice, Kaupapa Māori Health, Tiriti o
Waitangi, cultural safety, local history and knowledge of
Tauranga Moana.
The ward started with with four beds, then six and today
has 10-12 beds dedicated to Māori with the ability to flex to
22 beds if required.

Tauirioterangi Gerry Pouwhare,
Patient, 2014
I arrived at the Emergency Department when I had an
irregular heart beat and my blood pressure was really low.
I was taken up to the Kaupapa Ward and they welcomed
me in Te Reo Māori. That was nice and very different. They
have been monitoring me mainly but I did have a visit from
the chaplain and the social worker who just popped in to
say hi and to see if I needed anything. They have made
me feel very welcome here and my visitors too. I had quite
a few of them recently and they needed a very long seat
which was brought in for them.

Māori Health Runanga Chair, Punohu McCausland (left) and General Manager
Māori Health Planning and Funding, Janet McLean. “The BOPDHB is the
highest investor of all DHBs in the country in Māori Health,” says Janet.

The Runanga
The Bay of Plenty District Health Board (BOPDHB) has 18
iwi in its region - the highest number of iwi in the country.
BOPDHB identified that establishing a unique structure
was the best way to build the capacity and capability of
the Māori Provider sector, to contribute to the reduction of
health inequalities for Māori. As a result the region is seeing
positive health outcomes for Māori and a closing of the
disparity gap for a number of health targets.
In 2013 it won the Institute of Public Administration New
Zealand (IPANZ) Award for Crown-Māori Relationships.
The award recognises the extent to which the BOPDHB
has built a unique and innovative approach to addressing
the challenges of the region.
A contributing factor to their success is the BOPDHB’s Māori
Health Planning and Funding Unit – the only one of its kind
in New Zealand. General Manager Māori Health Planning
and Funding, Janet McLean has direct accountability and
responsibility for all Māori health funding and contracts
with the support of a dedicated team. Janet says Toi Ora –
optimum health and wellbeing – has been a strategic priority
for BOPDHB since the inception of DHBs in 2001.
“Given the high Māori population, diverse iwi, whānau and
hapū structures, we needed an approach which enabled
active and meaningful engagement at different levels between
the DHB and Māori,” she says. “What we have established
enables Māori to contribute to decision making and participate
in the delivery of their health and disability services.”

Tauirioterangi Pouwhare and his daughter Karlene.
“The staff here are aware of cultural differences which is excellent.”

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