Māori Nursing Research And Māori Student Nursing Hui – 14 To 17 May

13 May, 2026

Around 180 Māori nursing students and sector leads from across Aotearoa will descend on Christchurch this week from 14 to 17 May for the National Māori Student Nurses Hui.

The annual Hui-ā-tau o ngā Ākonga Neehi Māori, this year co-hosted by Ara Institute of Canterbury and Te Kaunihera o Ngā Neehi Māori – National Council of Māori Nurses comes at a time when two significant pieces of work related to Māori nursing and workforce development have been released, and coincides with International Nurses Week.

New research carried out by Kia Ora Hauora and Business and Economic Research Ltd (BERL) just released shows that the national Māori workforce development programme has helped hundreds of Māori students start nursing careers.

Since its inception in 2010 through to 2023, Kia Ora Hauora has registered 3,197 Māori interested in pursuing nursing careers. The data reveals that in 2023 the programme was likely to account for up to one third of the 4,681 Māori nurses employed in our health system at the time.

Recently the Nursing Council of New Zealand also completed a refresh of Kawa Whakaruruhau, the seminal work by Dr Irihapti Ramsden (Ngāi Tahu, Rangitane) that established and embedded cultural safety guidelines in the nation’s health sector.

“It’s fitting that Te Kaunihera o Ngā Neehi Māori should bring the annual hui to Ara in Ōtautahi where Dr Ramsden began her work, in the year that the importance of Kawa Whakaruruhau is renewed and relaunched; and our research is available,” says Kia Ora Hauora Tumu Whakahaere – Chief Executive, Cazna Luke (Ngāi Tahu, Te Rarawa).

“The groundbreaking work Dr Ramsden started at Christchurch Polytechnic, now Ara, almost 50 years ago challenged the status quo, exposing the biases within the health system and established benchmarks for what equity, partnership and safe care should look like. Her legacy and the work she carried out underpins what Kia Ora Hauora strives to achieve which is equity in the health workforce and better health outcomes for Māori.”

Te Kaunihera o Ngā Neehi Māori, Te Amorangi - President Dianna McGregor says the theme of this year’s national hui is Ka Rito te Tī – Sustaining Care from Within, focussing on the importance for students and nurses to sustain their wellbeing and maintain a healthy balance between giving of oneself and the necessity of self-care.

“The hui is much more than a networking opportunity, it is a formative experience that affirms Māori identity, builds confidence, and supports the development of a strong, manasustaining nursing workforce equipped to serve whānau and communities,” says Dianne McGregor.

The four-day hui will feature keynote speakers in Māori health research and education, Dr Suzanne Pitama, and Tania Huria, a presentation on taonga puoro as well as workshops and activities in and around the Ara City and Manawa nursing campuses. The programme is designed to engage the students in whakawhanaungatanga, leadership development, hauora Māori, and immersion within te ao hauora.

The new Kia Ora Hauora research demonstrates that the programme, now in its’ fifteenth year, is having a significant impact on increasing the number of Māori nurses and the number of Māori entering the health workforce overall. The research analysed data the programme collected between 2010 to 2023. Nurses includes enrolled nurses, registered nurses and nurse practitioners.

Of the 3,197 that registered an interest in nursing 910 (28%) of them recorded finding fulltime employment after completing their studies. The majority of those graduates 693 (76%) were employed as nurses.

“We are heartened by the research findings and excited to able to utilise the hard data we have collected to identify our achievements and highlight the challenges we face to increase the numbers of Māori working in the health sector.

“Kia Ora Hauora is underpinned by Te Ao Māori values of whanaungatanga committed to creating enduring relationships, manaakitanga offering continuous support and care; and rangatiratanga by investing in and growing tomorrow’s leaders.

“Of our original 3,197 registered students we had 3025 (95%) begin tertiary study and up to 2909 (95%) chose to study nursing. We know that 1280 (45%) completed their studies, but it could be up to 1754 (60%) based on Ministry of Education completion rates.”

“This tells us that although we have a lot of Māori interested in studying towards a nursing career, there are still barriers that prevent them from being able to complete their studies. We understand those barriers very well and over the years Kia Ora Hauora has matured and developed new and innovative support and capability offerings that are making a difference.”

Kia ora Hauora has a long-standing working relationship with Te Kaunihera o Ngā Neehi Māori and recently the two organisations signed a Memorandum of Understanding to formalise their relationship and enable improved collaboration to provide targeted support for Māori student nurses.

“We continue to battle high attrition rates and without the strong pastoral support, mentoring, and guidance Kia Ora Hauora provides, many Māori who enter nursing studies would struggle making it to the finish line,” says Dianna McGregor.

“The services they provide are growing the Māori health workforce by helping overcome barriers, whether it’s through funding or simply standing alongside students, it all makes a difference, and this research confirms it.

“Despite the challenges facing Māori nursing in a sector that is stretched thin, optimism remains, our resilience remains, our relationship with Kia Ora Hauora continues to deepen and together we continue to grow the next generation of Māori nurses.”

The research shows that each registered student received an average of 16.5 engagements with the programme. These include direct support and assistance, scholarships and funding, workshops and events, health pathways, updates and confirmations, as well as transition to employment and help with technical issues.

The majority (94%) of registered members were female with an average age of 28, and 27 for males; this mirrors the high number of females in the profession which was 90% female in 2023. The majority (88%) of registered members are based in the North Island and 12% in Te Waipounamu.

For more detailed information and analysis the full report can be found at https://www.kiaorahauora.co.nz/community/publications/

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