Lady Tureiti Moxon at the new Taakiri Tuu Wellness and Diagnostic Centre in Hamilton. Photo: Supplied / Sarah Sparks
Decades on from starting as a 'one stop shop' for out-of-towners, a kaupapa Māori health clinic is celebrating 30 years of serving the Hamilton community.
In 1994, Te Kōhao Health was just a seed on the Kirikiriroa marae - now it is a staple for Hamilton.
It was a dream sparked from Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu and Tā Ross Jansen to provide healthcare for people who were not from Tainui, but lived in the area.
When Lady Tureiti Moxon became a board member in 1997, the group was only able to serve "a handful of whānau".
"We didn't have any money, and just like today we have to generate our own income. It was very small beginnings."
Back in the early years, no one paid with money.
"You had people who paid with eggs, you had a bit of bartering, there was a bit of this and a bit of that, there was no money exchanged."
The clinic had one part-time doctor and a practice nurse until staff and contracts trickled its way.
Te Kōhao now serves more than 8500 whānau with both western and Māori models.
"And we're growing. We have a big workforce, and we're developing our workforce so we can better serve our people."
The new Taakiri Tuu Wellness and Diagnostic Centre in Hamilton. Photo: Supplied / Sarah Sparks
While the health system was based around clinicians, Moxon said the focus needed to be brought back to the people.
So, she went to the Waitangi Tribunal.
"The fact was that we were underpaid, and we have been underpaid for years as Māori providers - even to this day, it hasn't ever been resolved," she said.
"Much of the whawhai (fight) was really to bring a much more equitable system."
Māori had the greatest need out of any ethnicity in this country, she said.
Like many kaupapa Māori health organisations, Te Kōhao Health stepped up to help during the Covid-19 pandemic, providing a testing station on the marae, vaccinations, and support to more than just those on its records.
"The beautiful thing about it was we just about vaccinated half of Hamilton," Moxon said.
"And lots of people who came have never been on a marae before. Nobody felt like they didn't belong, and nobody felt as though they weren't important."
She said health should move away from a system based around clinicians, and go back to being based around the people.
"In order for us to change that paradigm, we all have to find our own solutions. The solution doesn't lay with the government, it lays in the communities.
"There needs to be a more balanced partnership between Māori and the crown and that's always been my view under te Tiriti o Waitangi."
To drive long term sustainability, Māori health support systems needed to become self-reliant - just like Te Kōhao's humble beginnings, she said.
Te Kōhau still works from Kirikiriroa marae but has since moved on from collecting eggs for healthcare, and now provides imaging and outpatient services.
To celebrate three decades, there will be speeches, a book presentation by Ngāti Hauā, and the cake will be cut by patron Te Makau Ariki Te Atawhai Paki, wife of the late Kiingi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII.
"First the AGM then the birthday party," Moxon said.
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