“The first government organisation I’ve heard of doing this”

Donna Kerridge is “super impressed” by the news that ACC will offer rongoā Māori to all kaimahi (staff) alongside their Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) service.

Donna is a well-respected, traditionally trained rongoā Māori practitioner of more than 20 years’ experience. She has lived and breathed rongoā Māori for most of her life.

Donna currently serves as the contracted negotiator for the national body of rongoā practitioners, Te Kahui Rongoā.

“I think it’s an amazing step and it paves the way for other organisations to do the same,” she says. 

“When it becomes clear to our people that organisations are not just ticking the Treaty box, then it makes it possible to bring our whole selves to work.

“I am super impressed actually.”

From 11 July, ACC’s Support Your Wellbeing services will expand to include rongoā Māori (traditional Māori healing).

That means ACC kaimahi can choose rongoā Māori services to support their wellbeing in the workplace and in their personal lives.

The offering is being made alongside ACC’s existing Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) service. It is available to Māori and non-Māori kaimahi.

Donna explains some Māori organisations offer rongoā Māori to their people – and Waipareira Trust in Tāmaki Makaurau is an example. 

“We kind of expect our own to provide this option, but to see a Crown organisation walk the talk, lifting the mana of Māori within their workplace is even better,” she says.

“To see our Treaty partner now seeing the benefits and learning to understand what ‘being well’ from a Māori perspective looks like, that is really important.”

Breaking new ground

Donna says this move from ACC underlines that our commitment to te Tiriti o  Waitangi and our Whāia Te Tika strategy is genuine and authentic.

She believes it is unprecedented for a Crown entity.  

"It's the first government organisation that I have heard of offering rongoā to their kaimahi – and I travel around a lot,” she says.

“The fact that ACC is doing it is just amazing. First or last it doesn’t matter. I am really grateful that the people who are looking after the health and wellbeing of those who have had injuries, they themselves are being looked after.

“It is only good news for the end users, the clients.”  

Donna describes rongoā is an amazing form of healing, but when you are Māori, and when your boss says ‘we acknowledge you as Māori’, that does a lot more than just the physical care.

“It helps lift the mauri (vitality) and the wairua (spirit) in our people. And the more people who are lifted like that, the more others will be energised by it as well. That mauri will grow. It will grow in the workplace and strengthen the whole workplace.” 

Donna is pleased the offering is available for Māori and non-Māori. She hopes it will build the awareness and understanding of Te Ao Māori.

“The more we share with our colleagues, the stronger our workplaces become. Anything that encourages us to understand each other better is a good thing.

“Quite often when we go to get care from health professionals we are simply thinking about the physical elements, but when you enable rongoā Māori, and make that available to your staff, you are looking after the whole person.”

Rongoā Māori making a difference

We are proud to offer our kiritaki (clients) rongoā Māori as an option in their recovery.

As at the end of June 2022, we had approved rongoā Māori for around 2,300 claims and funded more than 15,200 sessions.

One in five of those kiritaki hadn’t previously received other forms of ACC care or treatment before benefitting from rongoā.

ACC acknowledges that not all New Zealanders have been accessing ACC's services equally. This is something that we are committed to changing, particularly for Māori.

And now ACC staff have the same access to rongoā.

Michelle Murray is our Tumu Pae Ora. She is very proud of this initiative.

“In the past two years, we’ve supported more than 2,000 clients through traditional Māori healing – it’s fantastic to now offer that same choice for our own kaimahi,” says Michelle.

“We have set the stage for increased trust and meaningful change – a new chapter in ACC’s relationship with Māori that has already begun.”