On the latest episode of Ao Mai te Rā, Dr Hinemoa Elder is joined by Public Health Medicine Physician, Professor Joanne Baxter (Poutini Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō). Joanne is Dean of the Dunedin School of Medicine / Te Kura Whaiora o Ōtepoti and Co-director of the Māori Health Workforce Development Unit. She is also a member of the Ministry of Health’s Health Workforce Advisory Board. Joanne is recognised for her research on Māori mental health, ethnic health inequalities, indigenous medical education and Māori health workforce development. Joanne has played a critical role in strategic Māori development within the Health Sciences Division including leading a team to dramatically increase the recruitment, retention and achievement of Māori students in health sciences and health professional programmes.

On the latest episode of Ao Mai te Rā, Dr Hinemoa Elder is joined by Dr Kathie Irwin. (Ngāti Porou, Rakaipaaka, Ngāti Kahungunu, Orkney Islands, Scottish & Irish). Kathie has built a career specialising research, social entrepreneurship and creative change initially in the education sector. Kathie has extensive experience across three decades in higher education, public policy and research & evaluation. The last decade has seen Kathie in positions of senior management and governance working across the Public Sector, NGO and Iwi. In these roles she has championed the Treaty of Waitangi, Diversity and Inclusion, and led Maori Strategies enabling organisations to create real change, measured in concrete outputs and transformed outcomes.

Joining Dr Hinemoa Elder on this next episode of Ao Mai Te Rā is Riki Nia Nia (Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Kahungunu, Tonga). Currently the Executive Director, Māori, Equity & Health Improvement at Waikato District. Riki has worked in the New Zealand health system since completing an honours degree in social work, social policy and sociology at Massey University. Since 1996 he has worked at eight of the twenty District Health Boards (DHBs), in roles such as Service Manager of Public Health Services at Whanganui DHB, and as Executive Director of Māori Health for Capital and Coast, Hutt Valley and Wairarapa DHBs.

This episode of Ao Mai Te Rā–Dr Hinemoa Elder speaks with Dr Heather Came a seventh generation Pākehā New Zealander who grew up on Ngātiwai land. She has worked for nearly 25 years in health promotion, public health, Māori health and has a long involvement in social justice activism in Aotearoa New Zealand. Heather is a founding member and co-chair of STIR: Stop Institutional Racism, a fellow of the Health Promotion Forum, long standing member of Public Health Association and an active member of Tāmaki Tiriti Workers. She currently embraces life as an activist scholar. She was lead author of Te Tiriti-based practice in health promotion (2017) and has led shadow reports to various United Nations human rights committees around institutional racism. She is a Senior Lecturer based in the Taupua Waiora Māori Health Research Centre within Auckland University of Technology. In 2021 Heather was named joint Kāhui Hauora Tūmatanui New Zealand Public Health Association Public Health Champion with Auckland Regional Public Health Service. This award celebrates a lifetime contribution to public health.

This episode of Ao Mai Te Rā–Dr Hinemoa Elder speaks with Josiah Tualamali’i, a New Zealand born Samoan who grew up in Christchurch and Dunedin. He is passionate about elevating pacific, multicultural and young people’s voices so they are visible and influential in decision making. Governance, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Facilitation and Youth Development spaces are the key areas he loves being in. He co-founded and was chair of PYLAT for 5 years. PYLAT–Pacific Youth Leadership and Transformation was founded in 2010 connects Pacific Youth with decision makers and teaches them how to lead in a democratic, political setting. Josiah sits on a number of boards to support Pasifika youth engagement and youth.

On this latest episode of Ao Mai Te Rā Pat Snedden joins Dr Hinemoa Elder. Pat is a Pākehā Aucklander whose commitment to social justice has led him into a number of struggles where Māori and Pasifika disadvantage has been rife — in education, health and housing for instance. Pat has extensive governance experience, currently serving as Chair of Auckland District Health Board and Counties Manukau District Health Board, The Big Idea Charitable Trust, National Science Challenge - E Tipu E Rea and Ko Awatea Health Partnership, amongst others. He is currently Executive Chair of the Manaiakalani Education Trust, which works in the service of challenged school communities in Tāmaki. Pat was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to education and to Māori.

In this episode of Ao Mai Te Rā, panellists Jacob McGregor, Sam Austin and Kiri Dargaville participate with Dr Hinemoa Elder to discuss their perspectives,hopes and aspirations of working within the Health Sector incorporating their ethics and morals of Te Ao Māori.

In this first ever episode of Ao Mai Te Rā, Dr Hinemoa Elder has a kōrero with John Whaanga (Ngāti Rākaipaaka, Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Rongomaiwahine). John is currently the Deputy Director – General, Māori Health with the Ministry of Health. John originally joined the Ministry of Health in 1993, as a foundation member of the then newly-established Māori Health Directorate, Te Kete Hauora. John then spent six years working in the Ministry, culminating in management roles in both public health and Māori health (as Manager, Te Kete Hauora). He has held a number of roles within various government agencies and undertaken a number of significant roles in tertiary education