Pacific cultural and pastoral support services
Our Pacific health service aspires to ensure all Pacific patients and their families receive holistic, culturally responsive quality and safe care.
Our team understand and value the role of our Pacific heritage, culture, norms and protocols and familial connections to Pacific families living in the Pacific islands and abroad. We strive to ensure all Pacific patients accessing our hospital and specialist services feel welcome, safe, valued, heard, understood, informed and involved in the decisions regarding their care.
Our Pacific health service maintains strong links and relationships with key health and social providers in primary care and community settings. These include government agencies (MSD, Kainga Ora) and non-government organisations, charitable trusts and support groups.
Our service
Quality Pacific cultural, liaison and language support can help:
- improve the patient's journey through hospital and secondary care services
- offer support when requested
- identify early, and address social welfare requirements
- refer Pacific patients and families to relevant health and social services
- find opportunities to educate and promote good health
- assist in care plans and discharge planning and palliative care as required
- improve compliance with medication and cares on discharge to minimise early readmissions
- provide continuity of care through to primary care settings and patient's home
- empower Pacific families to take action to improve health outcomes.
The Pacific health service works as part of the multidisciplinary health team providing Pacific cultural knowledge and advice to assist clinicians and teams communicate effectively and appropriately with Pacific patients and their families.
The team are involved in care planning through to discharge planning.
We aim to visit every Pacific patient who is admitted to Waitākere Hospital or North Shore Hospital at least once during their stay. Our visits involve introductions and an offer of Pacific cultural and pastoral support. An assessment form is completed with consent.
In some circumstances when there is a surge in patients, the Pacific team may not have capacity to visit every patient. A referral form is available for services to refer patients for Pacific Health support.
Pacific language interpreting and translation services
The Pacific health service does not provide Pacific language interpreting and translation services. Interpreting services are provided by WATIS interpreting services.
WATIS interpreting service - Asian and Ethnic Health Services
Pacific language translation services are available from a range of providers.
Our Pacific team are all bi-lingual and fluent in the Samoan, Tongan and Cook Islands languages. We strive to assign staff to those patients who speak the same language where possible.
For urgent or emergency interpreting services, please contact the Pacific health navigator, so that we can assist.