About Kāhui Oranga
Tawhiti rawa tō tātou haeranga to kore haere tonu. Maha rawa wa tātou mahi, te kore mahi tonu. Tā James Henare
"We have come too far not to go further, we have done too much not to do more." Sir James Henare
The Health Sector Wellbeing and Healthy Workplaces Group was established in July 2018 as a collaborative of District Health Boards, health sector unions, NZ Blood Service and the Ministry of Health to work together to promote the wellbeing of the workforce. Joining later came the Mental Health Foundation and WorkSafe.
The name Kāhui Oranga was gifted by Dame R. Naida Glavish (Chief Advisor, Tikanga Māori Health at Waitematā and Auckland DHBs ) in 2019 and describes a collective weaving of wellness.
Our koru logo represents growth through health and wellbeing, in an embrace of manaaki, care and protection. The four koru arranged in the shape of the Southern Cross constellation speak to our unique location in the world and represent the four elements of Te Whare Tapa Whā. Te Taha Tinana (physical wellbeing), te Taha Wairua (spiritual wellbeing), te Taha Hinengaro (mental and emotional wellbeing) and te Taha Whānau (family and social wellbeing).
One of the first activities was the establishment of the wellbeingforhealth website as a hub for tools and resouces for workplace wellbeing in the New Zealand health sector. The Kāhui Oranga Steering Group agreed a work programme based on the elements of Te Whare Tapa Whā.
Kāhui Oranga have adopted a manaaki approach to enhance the wellbeing of our workforce. This means our offerings are designed to be mana enhancing, supportive, respectful and compassionate.
Workstream Leads
Fiona McCarthy is the Director of People and Culture at Waitematā DHB, and has had the privilege of working across several DHBs in multiple roles for over 20 years.
Having championed wellbeing at a national level since 2016, she chairs Kāhui Oranga to develop, support and action wellbeing initiatives that extends manaakitanga and uplifts our workforce.
He aha te mea nui o te ao
What is the most important thing in the world?
He tangata, he tangata, he tangata
It is the people, it is the people, it is the people
Brenda Hall is a workforce specialist in the Workforce Team at TAS. Brenda has supported and championed the Kāhui Oranga programme from its inception and is the chief weaver of the Kāhui Oranga collective. Starting her health career as a Registered Nurse, Brenda has worked in a wide variety of roles over time working with incredible people who contribute to the wellbeing of our communities.
Kerry England is the Organisational Development Practice Lead for Kia Ora tō Wāhi Mahi – Be Well at Te Toka Tumai (Auckland DHB) . A UK/ Aotearoa citizen she lives with her whānau in West Tāmaki Makaurau . With a background in Public Health – Health Improvement, Kerry believes that putting our Kaimahi wellbeing at the heart of everything we do, is foundational for the health and wellbeing for our communities and patients.
Rachel Prebble is the Group Manager, Organisation Development at Hutt Valley and Capital & Coast DHBs. She is currently on secondment at the Ministry of Health as the National Workforce Welfare Lead for the COVID-19 Vaccination and Immunisation Programme and led the staff welfare response to COVID-19 for the DHBs. Rachel is a Clinical Psychologist by profession, with a lifelong passion for supporting people to thrive.
Georgia Choveaux is an Industrial Officer for the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists Union.
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