More on health in Aotearoa

A bit of a round up from last week:

My last post highlighted how the Minister for Health is undoing and unpicking the Pae Ora legislation in order to undermine health workers, provide lower quality of care, and remove any requirements for actively achieving equitable health outcomes.

Ironically, the very Bill (Pae Ora Act) that the Minister is undermining came in for particular mention in the recent Access Matters Aotearoa Kōrero for Change: Health webinar.

Victoria Manning clearly outlined the strengths of this Act - ones that Simeon Brown proposes to weaken, remove, or make difficult to enact. Do watch the whole seminar - it is a great range of speakers who share what must change to make Aotearoa’s health system more inclusive and accessible for disabled people.

Watch the full recording below or read the transcript.

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I’ve long appreciated and admired the work of documentary maker

Bryan Bruce

, so it was an absolute privilege to talk with him on Head 2 Head about what's happening in health, the changes this government is seeking to make - and what the implications are for communities. We had a great conversation, and you can listen or watch on his Substack here:

(He really is the most wonderfully encouraging person and says the nicest things!)

Head2Head Ep 59 - Dr Rebekah Graham

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Last week

Mountain Tūī

posted about the discrepancy in funding for GP appointments in the public health system, versus what the government is willing to pay for telehealth - arguably a poorer health service yet is being funded a quite a high rate:

Leaked documents from Te Whatu Ora showed National planned to pay telehealth providers - including ‘reluctant PHO' Tend Health - between 367% and 433% what it funds struggling GPs for casual patients.

The telehealth service is targeted at those not enrolled with a local GP.

But as GenPro Chairman Dr Angus Chambers pointed out, the funding plans showed telehealth providers would be funded between $55 and $65 for each consultation.

GPs received around $15 for a casual adult appointment and $30 for a child.

Privatisation costs. It is an expensive and less efficient solution. And it results in a lower quality of service. Being able to see a GP, in a timely fashion, in person, when and as needed is a core part of a functioning health system. It is also pretty vital for sustaining the health of population. But, instead of funding GPs as needed, this government is firing funds at privately owned telehealth. You can read Mountain Tui’s full post here:

National's flagship telehealth costs Kiwis up to $99 a call as Simeon Brown funds telehealth providers 3-4 times higher than GPs

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I shall close with a humorous anecdote from Julie Woods aka That Blind Woman from her RNZ interview, where she notes the need for medication to be labelled in braille.

"When I go to the pharmacy and pick up my medication, it comes in a big bag," she said. "The way I can identify my medication is by the shape of the box or the size of the tube, or the feel of the tablet.

"I can't tell what they're for. I just recognise them by the shape - and that's not ideal.

"I had two tubes of ointment - one was for my vagina and one was for my face, and I couldn't tell which was which."

Will keep you posted regarding submissions and what can be done.

Take care,

Rebekah