Hīkoi for Health Health Reform in Aotearoa: A People's Inquiry Help us redesign our public health system

Our Kaupapa/Mission:

We are two experienced doctors and poets who, like many other New Zealanders, are angered by the failure of successive governments to care for the taonga of our public health system.

We believe it is time for new ways to think about health and healthcare in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

We work in a system that seems to just put band-aids on band-aids. And now the whole mess is peeling off. We know we are not the only ones who are fed up and we’re not cheeky enough to think we have all the answers.

In what we’ve called the Hīkoi for Health: A People’s Inquiry, we’ll be driving around the motu in a refurbished van/ambulance (a ‘vanbulance’ for short) to explore and record your ideas for improvement. Think of the van as a mobile select committee coming to a town near you on its way to the grounds of Parliament where we’ll share with anyone who’ll listen what we’ve found.

We are lucky to have two amazing young women, Oriwa and Emily, making the journey with us to collect and document your stories and suggestions. They’ll also be updating our socials to let people know where we’ll be and when. They represent the ideas, passion and promise of young people and will work to capture their concerns.

We’d love to meet you and kōrero. You can come to our hui, jump in the vanbulance and record what you want to say. Or you can upload comments or videos to this website. More than anything we want to carry your words and images to Wellington.

This may seem like a crazy idea (sometimes it does to us too!) but we are poets as well as doctors and this hīkoi is a kind of living poem we are composing as we go along. So we’ll be needing places to speak and sometimes places to stay for the night. And a cuppa and a chat will always be deeply appreciated.

If you can't be with us in person you can still contribute your story or suggestion by clicking the 'Share' button

Anger into ACTION

Many of us are frustrated and angry at the state of the public health system. Use that energy by joining us in taking action!

Politics OUT OF Healthcare!

Healthcare decisions should be driven by science and data, healthcare professionals and patients, NOT politics!

People gathered in a park with signs, including a prominent yellow sign that reads 'WE WANT TO LIVE'. Individuals are seated on the grass, some in casual clothing and others in medical scrubs, suggesting a protest or public demonstration.

Health Reform NOW!

The health system is broken. Just throwing money at it won't work. It CAN and MUST be redesigned intelligently so that we get the care that we need when we need it!

Health BEGINS in the Community

The journey to health shouldn't start in hospitals, EDs, or even GP offices- it should start where people live, work, play, and worship

Four Pou of our Kaupapa:

Who We Are

We are doctor-poets and we have seen first hand the many ways our current health system fails our patients. For us, this inquiry is personal. This journey is a kind of living poem to which we can all contribute.

We are lobbying for for a redesigned New Zealand health system, free from politically motivated interference, and are inviting all to come out and share their stories and ideas for improvement.

Come Join Us!

Our Itinerary:

Here's the list of the places we will be passing through on our way from Te Tai Tokerau to Wellington. As we've said we'd love people to reach out and invite us in to talk to them - so if we're going past please let us know if there is a place we can come and talk. The dates are approximate so be sure to check our socials for regular updates and venues. We'd love to see you and kōrero!

Day 1 - Saturday, April 26: Kaitaia (morning), Kerikeri (afternoon/evening)

Day 2- Sunday, April 27: Whangārei

Day 3- Monday, April 28: Cricket Pavilion, Auckland Domain, 12-2 pm, south Auckland (afternoon/evening)

Day 4- Tuesday, April 29: Hamilton (midday)

Day 5- Wednesday, April 30: Whakatāne: Knox Presbyterian Church, 83a Domain Rd, 5-7 pm

Day 6- And on the 6th day they rested!

Day 7- Friday, May 2: Gisborne

Day 8- Saturday, May 3: Hastings/Flaxmere Community Centre, 30 Swansea Rd, 10am-12pm

Day 9- A driving day (and some more rest!)

Day 10- Monday, May 5: New Plymouth (morning), Whanganui (afternoon/evening)

Day 11- Tuesday, May 6: Palmerston North (midday), Levin/Ōtaki (afternoon/evening)

Day 12- Preparation for our trip to Wellington- the final push!

Day 13- Thursday, May 8: Wellington, Parliament grounds, 1-3 pm

people laughing and talking outside during daytime

Get Involved!

There are plenty of ways to get involved, from coming out to one of our hui (meetings) and sharing your stories and suggestions to donating some kai for our journey! Click below to find out more.

How you can contribute to the kaupapa

PROTEST. REFORM. CARE.

Te Waka Porotēhe.Te Waka Whakaora.Te Waka Manaaki.

Follow the transformation of our "vanbulance" into a vehicle for change:

Arrived at its new home, November, 2024

Scrubs up real nice! Ready for painting... December, 2024

As poets, we're always on the lookout for a good metaphor! And we couldn't pass up repurposing an old tradie van into a fanciful "ambulance" as a metaphor for taking something old and turning it into something new and beautiful. For rushing to the rescue of a gravely ill health system. For turning the current health system, which works like an "ambulance at the bottom of the cliff", providing care to Kiwis when they are already sick or injured, and turning it into one that focuses instead on keeping people and communities healthy.