Te Tiriti o Waitangi
Our Commitment
At the Women’s Clinic, we take our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and providing care that is culturally safe and responsive.
Please know that we are keen to understand your requirements to enable you to uphold your Tikanga.
Be reassured, everyone involved in your care at The Women’s Clinic undergoes regular cultural sensitivity and Te Tiriti o Waitangi training. There is space in any interaction with us for you to express your individual requirements to enable us to respect your cultural needs.
In addition, we can provide you, at your request and no cost, a Kete for burial purposes.
We also closely monitor outcomes for Māori in our care to ensure equity of service for Māori compared with Non-Māori
Understanding Te Tiriti
As described by the Human Rights Commission, we understand Te Tiriti o Waitangi as establishing:
- Article 1 – Kāwanatanga / Governance: the Crown’s right and responsibility to govern
- Article 2 – Tino Rangatiratanga / Self-Determination: the right of Māori to exercise authority over their taonga (including health, reproduction, language, and culture)
- Article 3 – Rite Tahi / Equity: the right of Māori to equitable health outcomes and citizenship rights
- Article 4 – Wairuatanga (spirituality): the protection of religious and cultural beliefs, including tikanga and te reo Māori
Guiding Principles in Practice
To give life to these articles, our work is guided by five principles that shape both our strategy and service delivery:
- Tino Rangatiratanga – Self-determination
We support the right of Māori to undergo reproductive healthcare, conceptualising the person’s decision to have this as a continuation of a much older, Māori collective-endorsed practice of determining one’s own health and wellbeing and that of the whānau. - Partnership
We work in partnership with Māori, including a person’s whānau if requested, for their care with us. A partnered approach to the process and decision-making ensures Māori can enact their rangatiratanga or self-determine their futures while exercising mana motuhake or authority over their bodies and reproductive health. - Active Protection
We share evidence-based information about reproductive health so that Māori can make decisions and prepare themselves to uphold their tikanga or cultural practice (eg, karakia, rongoā, support person, container for and a location to place products of conception). Health practitioners actively support Māori to make decisions that are best for them. - Options
We ensure that Māori have care that enables them to uphold their tikanga or cultural practice. The process must complement a Māori person’s mana or inherent authority and dignity, support their tikanga or cultural practice, and be culturally safe as defined by Māori. - Equity
We strive to ensure health outcomes for Māori match those of other New Zealanders. Acknowledging that equitable outcomes will be achieved when care is implemented in ways that give effect to the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and relevant professional competencies and Ngā Paerewa are met.
Our Actions
We bring this commitment to life through:
- Embedding Te Tiriti-based decision-making and equity lenses in our policies, systems, and strategic planning.
- Providing regular cultural safety and Te Tiriti training for all kaimahi (staff), clinicians, and contractors.
- Normalising te reo and tikanga Māori across our sites, communications, and daily practices.
- Actively monitoring health outcomes for Māori to ensure equity in access, experience, and results.
- Creating space in every interaction for Māori to express individual tikanga or spiritual/cultural needs.
- Providing appropriate practical supports, such as kete for burial and flexibility in care settings.
Reflective and Evolving Practice
We are committed to ongoing self-reflection, learning, and improvement in our understanding of Te Tiriti and how we uphold it. We recognise that our relationship with Māori will continue to evolve, and we welcome guidance from iwi, hapū, and Māori providers to ensure our approach is both accountable and authentic.
Ūnga ki te Tiriti o Waitangi
Tō Mātou Ūnga
Kei The Women’s Clinic, ka kawea e mātou tō mātou ūnga ki te Tiriti o Waitangi, ki te tuku i te tiakanga e haumaru ā-ahurea ana, he mea urupare hoki.
Kia mōhio mai koe e hīkaka ana mātou kia mārama ki ō hiahia e āhei ai koe ki te whakaū i ō tikanga.
Kia whakamanawatia mai koe, ko ngā tāngata katoa e whai wāhi ana ki tō tiakanga ki The Women’s Clinic he auau te whakangungu i a rātou mō te mārama ā-ahurea, mō te Tiriti o Waitangi hoki. Ka whai wāhi koe ki tēnā, ki tēnā o ō whakawhitinga kōrero ki a mātou ki te whakapuaki i ōu ake hiahia kia taea ai e mātou te whakaute i ō hiahia ā-ahurea.
Waihoki, ka taea e mātou te hoatu i tētahi kete mō ngā take nehu ki a koe, ina tono mai koe, ā, kāore he utu.
Kei te āta aroturuki mātou i ngā putanga mō te hunga Māori e tiakina ana e mātou hei whakarite i te tautika o te ratonga ina whakatairitehia ki te hunga ehara i te Māori.
Te Mārama ki te Tiriti
E ai ki te whakaahuaranga e Te Kāhui Tika Tangata, e mārama ana mātou ki te Tiriti o Waitangi hei mea whakatū i ēnei:
- Atikara 1 – Kāwanatanga / Governance: te motika me te haepapa a te Karauna ki te mahi kāwana
- Atikara 2 – Tino Rangatiratanga / Self-Determination: te motika o te hunga Māori ki te whakatinana i te mana i ō rātou taonga (tae atu ki te hauora, ki te whakaputa uri, ki te reo, ki te ahurea hoki)
- Atikara 3 – Rite Tahi / Equity: te motika o te hunga Māori ki ngā putanga hauora tautika me ngā motika kirirarau
- Atikara 4 – Wairuatanga (spirituality): te tiakanga o ngā whakapono ā-hāhi, ā-ahurea hoki, tae atu ki ngā tikanga, ki te reo Māori anō hoki
Ngā Mātāpono Matua e Whakatinanatia nei
Kia whakatinanatia ai ēnei atikara, e arahina ana tā mātou mahi e ngā mātāpono e rima e auaha nei i tā mātou rautaki, i tā mātou tuku ratonga hoki:
- Tino Rangatiratanga – Self-determination
Kei te tautoko mātou i te motika o ngāi Māori kia whakahaerehia te tiakanga hauora whakaputa uri, me te whakaaro ki tā te tangata whakatau ki te pēnei hei mahinga tonutanga o tētahi tikanga tawhito, i whakamanatia ngātahitia e te Māori o te whakatau i tōu ake hauora, oranga hoki, i tērā o te whānau hoki. - Houruatanga
Ka mahi mātou ki te hunga Māori i roto i te houruatanga, tae atu ki te whānau o te tangata ina tonoa, mō tōna tiakanga ki a mātou. Mā te aronga hourua ki te tukanga, ki te whakatau take hoki, e whakarite kia taea e te Māori te whakatinana i tō rātou rangatiratanga, te whakatau ake rānei i ō rātou anamata i te wā e whakatinana ana i te mana motuhake mō ō rātou tinana, mō tō rātou hauora whakaputa uri hoki. - Whakahaumaru Hohe
Ka tiria e mātou te mōhiohio pūtake-taunakitanga mō te hauora whakaputa uri kia taea ai e ngā tāngata Māori te whakatau take, me te whakarite i a rātou anō ki te whakaū i ā rātou tikanga, i ā rātou ritenga ā-ahurea rānei (hei tauira, te karakia, te rongoā, te kaitautoko, te ipu mō ngā hua o te whakakairatanga me tētahi wāhi hei whakatakoto i tērā). Ka āta tautoko ngā mātanga hauora i ngā tāngata Māori ki te whakatau take e tino pai ana mō rātou anō. - Ngā kōwhiringa
Ka whakarite mātou kei ngā tāngata Māori te tiakanga e whakaahei ai i a rātou ki te whakaū i ā rātou tikanga, i ā rātou ritenga ā-ahurea rānei. Me whakaū te tukanga i te mana o te tangata Māori, me tautoko i āna tikanga, i āna ritenga ā-ahurea rānei, ā, me hauora ā-ahurea e ai ki te tautuhinga e te Māori. - Tautika
E nanaiore ana mātou ki te whakarite i ngā putanga hauora mō te hunga Māori e ōrite ana ki ō ērā atu hunga nō Aotearoa. E whakaūngia ana ka whakatutukihia ngā putanga tautika ina whakatinanatia te tiakanga mā ngā āhua ka whakatinana ai i ngā mātāpono o te Tiriti o Waitangi, i ngā mātau ngaio hāngai, i Ngā Paerewa anō hoki.
Ā Mātou Mahi
Ka whakatinanatia nei tēnei ūnga e mātou mā:
- Te whakaū i te whakatau take pūtake-Tiriti me ngā arotahi tautika ki ā mātou kaupapa here, pūnaha, whakamaheretanga ā-rautaki hoki.
- Te tuku i te whakangungu auau mō te haumaru ā-ahurea me te Tiriti mā ngā kaimahi, mā ngā kaihaumanu, mā ngā kaikirimana katoa.
- Te whakarite kia māori te reo Māori me ngā tikanga puta noa i ō mātou wāhi, i ō mātou whakawhitinga kōrero, i ngā mahi o ia rā.
- Te āta aroturuki i ngā putanga hauora mō te Māori hei whakarite i te tautika mō te āheinga, mō te wheako, mō ngā putanga hoki.
- Te whakarite wāhi ki ia whakawhitinga kōrero kia whakapuakina ai e ngā tāngata Māori ngā hiahia ake ā-tikanga, ā-wairua, ā-ahurea rānei.
- Te tuku i ngā tautoko whaitake tika, pērā i ngā kete mō te nehunga, me te ngāwari ki ngā horopaki tiakanga.
Te Mahi Huritao, Whanake Haere Hoki
E whakaū ana mātou ki te huritao whaiaro haere tonu, ki te ako, ki te whakapai ake i tō mātou mārama ki te Tiriti, ki te āhua o tā mātou whakaū i tērā hoki. E whakaū ana mātou ka whanake tonu tō mātou hononga ki te hunga Māori, ā, e pai ana mātou ki ngā kupu ārahi mai i ngā iwi, i ngā hapū, i ngā kaiwhakarato Māori hei whakarite ka noho haepapa tō mātou aronga, he mea tūturu hoki.
