Māori Nurses Recognised As Stars By Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand With Inaugural National ‘Whetū' Awards

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2 days ago

Press Release – Te Kohao Health
Te Waimaarino Patena (Ngti Hua) and Paula Walker (Thoe, Maniapoto), both based at Te Khao Health, were recognised for their exemplary professional practice as outstanding nurses.
Two Māori nurses from Kirikiriroa have been named as the first-ever recipients of Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand's new national Whetū Awards, which honour outstanding contributions in primary health care community-based nursing.
Te Waimaarino Patena (Ngāti Hāua) and Paula Walker (Tūhoe, Maniapoto), both based at Te Kōhao Health, were recognised for their exemplary professional practice as outstanding nurses.
The awards, launched to coincide with Matariki, celebrate nurses whose work uplifts and supports in powerful ways in the community. Like the stars they are named after, these nurses shine light into spaces that need warmth, trust, and healing.
Managing Director of Te Kōhao Health, Lady Tureiti Moxon is delighted to hear the news that not one but two from her team have been nationally recognised. She has long championed that more Māori nurses are needed to achieve transformative change in our health system.
'We need more Māori nurses like Te Waimaarino and Paula. Their mahi restores trust in a system that hasn't always served our people well. When Māori lead, outcomes improve. The national recognition of these wāhine is a testament to the deep, lasting change they're making in the lives of whānau every day.'
Te Waimaarino Patena received the Waitī Award. Known for her steady presence and calm, compassionate approach, she has worked on the frontlines of community care for years in respiratory clinics, guiding complex care, and creating safe spaces where whānau feel seen and heard.
She is now completing her Nurse Prescriber training at the University of Waikato, the first at Te Kōhao Health to do so. Reflecting on her mahi, she says, 'We just get on with it because our people need us. I'm not here to prove anything I just know we need more of us in these roles. Our people trust us because they see themselves in us.'
Paula Walker received the Tupu-a-Nuku Award for her whānau-first approach and commitment to values like manaaki and kotahitanga. She leads the childhood immunisation programme at her clinic, where she works with whānau so they determine their Hauora care plan. 'A lot of people have been told what to do their whole lives,' she says. 'We try to flip that and say, what do you need? What works for you?'
Paula's care comes from lived experience walking alongside whānau through their own health challenges has shaped the way she shows up. 'Caring for people isn't something I put on with my uniform,' she said. 'It's simply who I am.'
There are over 78,000 practising nurses in Aotearoa. Māori make up only 7 percent of that workforce, despite being over 17 percent of the population. The awards were open to all nurses, yet it's powerful that two Māori nurses have been honoured. The tohu recognise the vital role Māori nurses play in improving health outcomes for their communities that have the highest need in the population.