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Te Waka Oranga: An Indigenous Intervention for Working with Māori Children and Adolescents with Traumatic Brain Injury

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 November 2013

Hinemoa Elder
Hinemoa Elder*
Affiliation:
Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, New Zealand
*
Address for correspondence: Dr Hinemoa Elder, FRANZCP, PhD, PO Box 334, Oneroa, Waiheke Island, New Zealand. E-mail: hinemoa@xtra.co.nz
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Abstract

Background: Application of salient cultural knowledge held by families following child and adolescent traumatic brain injury (TBI) has yet to be documented in the literature. While the importance of the family is a well-established determinant of enhanced outcomes in child and adolescent TBI, the emphasis to date has been on the leading role of professional knowledge. The role of whānau (extended family) is recognised as an essential aspect of hauora (wellbeing) for Māori, who are overrepresented in TBI populations. However, whānau knowledge systems as a potent resource for enhancing recovery outcomes have not previously been explored. This paper describes the development of an indigenous intervention, Te Waka Oranga.

Method: Rangahau Kaupapa Māori (Māori determined research methods) theory building was used to develop a TBI intervention for working with Māori. The intervention emerged from the findings and analysis of data from 18 wānanga (culturally determined fora) held on rural, remote and urban marae (traditional meeting houses).

Results: The intervention framework, called Te Waka Oranga, describes a process akin to teams of paddlers working together to move a waka (canoe, vessel) in a desired direction of recovery. This activity occurs within a Māori defined space, enabling both world views, that of the whānau and the clinical world, to work together. Whānau knowledge therefore has a vital role alongside clinical knowledge in maximising outcomes in mokopuna (infants, children, adolescents and young adults) with TBI.

Conclusion: Te Waka Oranga provides for the equal participation of two knowledge systems, that of whānau and of clinical staff in their work in the context of mokopuna TBI. This framework challenges the existing paradigm of the role of families in child and adolescent TBI rehabilitation by highlighting the essential role of cultural knowledge and practices held within culturally determined groups. Further research is needed to test the intervention.

Keywords

indigenoustraumatic brain injurychild and adolescentframeworkMāori
Type
Articles
Information
Brain Impairment , Volume 14 , Issue 3 , December 2013 , pp. 415 - 424
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Australian Academic Press Pty Ltd 2013 

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