Latest news with #NgāiTeRangi
NZ Herald
21-05-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Meth and mental illness: What Tauranga social workers see on the frontline
Stanley said drug, alcohol and mental health services were hamstrung by a lack of funding, lack of qualified staff and an avalanche of people seeking help. 'A lot of particularly Māori and non-government organisations are hitting the wall and until you solve all of those reasons in its entirety, it's just going to get worse.' The Government has set a workforce target of training 500 mental health and addiction professionals annually. Te Whatu Ora Health NZ told NZME it recognised there were inconsistencies in services in Tauranga, and it was working to strengthen the 'connected continuum of care'. 'Chasing our tails' Ngāi Te Rangi Oranga Whānau social worker Violet Davidson said many of her mental health clients required significant help and wraparound services. In her 24 years of experience, the issues had escalated and secondary health care services were 'backlogged'. Depression, anxiety, stress and suicide were rampant in the community, driven by poverty, trauma, intergenerational and social factors. 'These are very challenging times and some of those who are presenting need more in-depth or specialised treatment. They have severe problems. 'We're trying to provide interventions or preventions but at times it feels like we are chasing our tails and have missed the boat.' For example, some referrals for specialised treatment were declined, with people 'pushed back to their GP'. She often worked with entire families to address dysfunction stemming from multiple issues. Ngāi Te Rangi Oranga Whānau supervisor and social worker Glenn Shee said there were fewer addiction services available despite more people needing help. 'It is getting worse.' He said Ngāi Te Rangi would not turn anyone away and it was taking referrals from organisations it had not traditionally worked with. To him, the future looked bleak for those trapped in addiction. Shee was also concerned about social workers burning out as workloads increased. Study and employment criteria could work against people with criminal records who wanted to qualify as social workers. The former drug addict, who had been clean for more than 15 years, said those with life experiences similar to their clients often found it easier to break down barriers – and were living proof of life beyond addiction. Recent Social Workers Registration Board workforce reports showed more social workers were leaving the profession than entering, student numbers were the lowest since 2013, and hundreds of social workers planned to retire or leave due to high workload or burnout in the next few years. 'Battle' to get people support Ngāi Te Rangi social worker Patrick Mitchell, 65, is retiring after 23 years in the industry. He found his niche in mental health but said the 'battle to get support for those people is real and proving more difficult'. In his view, the move away from residential care had overwhelmed community mental health services. 'I think they [mental health services] are looking for behavioural problems, not mental health, so they can say 'those people don't belong here'.' Mitchell said dealing with whānau with mental health issues was 'stressful and confronting', and more training and support was needed to help workers feel confident and comfortable. Five years ago, Ngāi Te Rangi Oranga Whānau kaimahi (worker) Aaron de Ridder was in jail. The recidivist offender said his final rock bottom came when his mother and greatest supporter died when he was behind bars. 'I made a conscious decision then because I couldn't be there for my mum, my family and my kids.' Before prison, de Ridder was addicted to methamphetamine and any drugs he could get his hands on. His tribe was drug dealers, prostitutes, gang members and criminals. Following his release, he lived at Tauranga transitional facility Takitimu House and completed an array of programmes before working with people with addictions. Methamphetamine was easier to get than cannabis, de Ridder said. 'It's so cheap and readily available, which is crazy. When I started meth, it was a fulltime job to stay high because it was so expensive. Drug use in Tauranga has been 'bad for years', he said, and those using meth came from all walks of life including professionals like lawyers and business executives. In his opinion, the city needed its own residential drug rehabilitation centre. 'It's absolutely stupid when we have one of the biggest capita of drug use in the country.' Now de Ridder is on the Takitimu House board of trustees and is a member of the Kainga Tupu Taskforce, addressing homelessness in the Western Bay of Plenty. He is also studying to become an alcohol and other drugs clinician. 'I feel proud to give back to the community I took from for so many years and to support those people who are going through similar struggles.' Te Whatu Ora Health NZ responds Health NZ Te Whatu Ora Bay of Plenty group director of operations, Pauline McGrath, acknowledged access to support, especially for addiction services, had been inconsistent in the region. 'We are working to design and strengthen a more connected continuum of care—from primary and community services through to supports for people with high and complex needs." A new approach to regional planning aiming to ensure services were 'tailored to community needs' would begin in the Bay of Plenty region soon. A recent stocktake of mental health and addiction services found 43 contracted providers in Bay of Plenty and 136 across the Te Manawa Taki (Central North Island) health region. The goal of this was to give Health NZ more visibility of service locations and gaps, and how to improve local access, especially to short and medium-term residential care. 'These insights will help inform how we better connect hospital specialist services, iwi, providers, and communities to improve access and outcomes in Tauranga and across the region.' Residential treatment was available at Rotorua's Te Whare Oranga Ngakau 'through direct engagement with Ngai Te Rangi' for Tauranga residents. The workforce issues were a 'critical focus' - getting people with the right skills where they were needed. Mental health service providers had access to workforce development and post-graduate training in mental health and addiction. There were also free online training resources that any social service provider could access through workforce centres. - Additional reporting Samantha Motion
Scoop
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Ngā Tohu Toi 2025 Recipients Announced – Join Us To Celebrate Māori Excellence In The Arts
Tauranga, Aotearoa – Ngā Tohu Toi is proud to announce the 2025 recipients of its prestigious awards celebrating excellence and leadership in ngā Toi Māori (Māori arts). These awards honour artists, knowledge holders, and innovators whose mahi enriches our communities and strengthens the future of Māori creative expression. This year's recipients will join a distinguished cohort of past award winners, including Ria Hall, Stan Walker, Mabel Wharekawa-Burt, Darcy Nicholas, Joanna Paul, Whirimako Black, Joe Harawira and others. This year, we celebrate the following outstanding recipients: Wi Taepa (Ngāi te Rangi, Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue) Tuakoi Ohia (Ngāti Hine, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Pūkenga, Ngāti Ranginui, Te Āti Awa, Te Arawa, Tainui) Justine Murray (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui Ngai Tamarāwaho, Ngai Tukairangi, Ngāti Tapu, Ngāti Kahu) Regan Balzer (Ngāti Ranginui,Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Pūkenga, Raukawa, Te Arawa, Apakura) Peter Harawira (Ngāti Awa, Ngai Te Rangi) Sarah Tangitu ( Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi, Pirirakau, Ngā Tamawhariua) Mauria (Tracey) Ngatoko Rahipere (Ngai te Rangi, Ngati Ranginui) Chloe Reweti (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi te Rangi, Ngāi te Ahi) Te Karehana Toi aka TEEKS (Ngāpuhi, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui) Julie Paama-Pengelly (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāi Tūwhiwhia, Ngāi Tauaiti and Ngāti Tapu) Whare Thompson (Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Ngā Puhi) Ngā Tohu Toi invites everyone to join us in honouring these incredible individuals at our 2025 Awards Celebration: Thursday 19th June 2025 The Cargo Shed, Tauranga Moana From 5:00pm onwards Enjoy a powerful evening of celebration, live performance, storytelling, and the collective recognition of Māori creative excellence. Tickets are available now at: Tables of six are also available to purchase for you and your roopu. This is a night not to be missed — a moment to stand in support of our artists and the cultural legacy they continue to shape for generations to come.
NZ Herald
30-04-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Puhirake Ihaka: A life dedicated to iwi, honoured by a nation
'I was pretty much entrenched in the mainstream way of life,' he says. There, Ihaka completed a postgraduate degree in engineering, later working for several prominent firms before launching his own consultancy. 'I thought, well, I've given 45 plus years to the mainstream Pākehā side of me, maybe it's time I did something for my Māori side. So I took my steps and returned home [and] went back to my tūrangawaewae.' He hoki anō ki tōna ūkaipō Nā wai rā, ka hoki a Ihaka ki tana ūkaipō, ki Tauranga Moana, ki ngā rekereke o ana pakeke, ki te mātotorutanga o tana ao Māori. I ngā wā o mua, i mōhiotia whānuitia a Ihaka ki tōna ingoa Pākehā, ki a Albert. Nō tana hūnukutanga ki te kaenga, ka hoki anō ia ki tana ingoa Māori ki a Puhirake, hei whakamana i tana tipuna i a Rawiri Puhirake o Ngāi Te Rangi. He kanohi kitea i roto i te iwi, i te hapori anō hoki Ihaka has spent decades serving his iwi and community, holding leadership roles across key iwi trusts and governance boards. He represented Ngāti Tapu on Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Te Rangi for 24 years, led Treaty research and negotiations, and helped establish Tauranga City Council's Tangata Whenua Collective and Māori ward. He has chaired the Otamataha Trust, served on multiple iwi and education trusts, and remains a respected kaumātua and advocate for Māori representation. Ihaka says securing a seat at the council table and being part of local government decision-making has been one of the biggest challenges for Māori. 'It's evolved, yes. I would say [30] years ago, I would give it a one or two - now I would say it's about a five or six. [We're] there and it's getting better and we can only improve.' But the 76-year-old's greatest achievement remains rooted in his cultural identity. 'To connect with my taha Māori, with my Māoritanga on whānau, hapū [and] iwi basis all the way through, I learnt as much as I could. [Hopefully] I can carry that on.'
