Making sure families have a healthy home is a key focus for a new programme helping Pasifika families in South Auckland.
The recently launched Pacific Healthy Homes initiative is set to support more than 500 families. The initiative is an extension of the Health Homes Initiative funded by Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ.
AWHI started as a pilot initiative in Auckland over 10 years ago to reduce household crowding and provide warm, dry, and healthy homes and is now a well established successful programme for enhancing the health and wellbeing of families in South Auckland and Waikato.
AWHI Relationship lead for the Pacific Healthy Home initiative Evita Toala says, it is great to have a programme that caters to the older Pasifika communities.
“The current one is for young people aged 0 to 19 and started as a rheumatic fever prevention project,” she says.
“Now that that’s expanded and fully established, we’ve been fortunate for the Ministry for Pacific Peoples to be able to identify there is a need for our 45+ whanau or families and fortunate to get the funding for the Pacific Healthy Homes initiative.”
Another key focus is for people who have experienced one of the 10 Ambulatory Sensitive Hospitalisation conditions (ASH) such as pneumonia, heart disease and diabetes.
Auckland health provider, Pasefika Family Health will deliver the programme working with families based in Otahuhu through to Papakura.
Leading a team of four, Letele Tuiafitu Tiseli says she is proud of her team who are committed to working alongside families on this new initiative.
“Well I encourage all the families; here is the service, if we contact them please make sure that you’re willing to take this because it’s a great support from the government and not only that but this service is for our people, in order to make sure your house is warm and comfortable and support whatever the health situation that you are currently have.”
And taking part in the Pacific Healthy Homes Initiative is Vaivaifolau Kailahi who says while he didn’t know much about the programme in the beginning, he now wants to encourage other Pacific families to consider using the service.
“I thought I was very well versed in what is going on, but this programme, I didn’t know,” he says.
“But I know our Pasifika people, when we buy our homes, we just live in it, we are just happy… but if it wasn’t for the team, I wouldn’t have gone for it because filling forms, it’s a very boring thing for us Pacifica to do, but with their help…I’d like to invite all the Pacifica homeowners to get in touch with the people like AWHI.”
Evita Toala says it’s a great initiative that she hopes more families will get involved with.
“It’s for our people and when I think of the provider network that we’re working with, language is everything for us, especially in our culture.
“So please if you think that this might be for you don’t hesitate to reach out either via social media on FB or instagram or even through calling us on 0800 AWHI and we’ll be able to speak to you about the programme,” says Evita.
