Preventive & Social Medicine: Indigenous health models

The Māori philosophy towards health is based on a holistic wellbeing health model.

For many Māori the major deficiency in modern health services is the lack of recognition of taha wairua (spirit).

The five Māori health models outlined here are Te whare tapa wha, Te Pae Mahutonga, Te Wheke, and the Meihana model and included at the bottom is an explaination of the Te Aka Whai Ora - Maori Health Authority.

First of all, it's important for Pacific research to take place in an environment and with maintenance of le va. "In learning settings, le va is about giving space and time to prioritise and value relationships with students, families and colleagues – nurturing physical and relational spaces. Teu le Vā (nurture the relationship) is a common expression because it shows how relationships define us. Le va is also about how we are within the space; encompassing principles such as reciprocity, balance, respect, and mutual trust." Tapasā, Pacific Values, Ministry of Education New Zealand

Resources and databases:

University of Western Australia: Health resources - Indigenous Information Sources - Guides at University of Western Australia (uwa.edu.au)

InformIT: Indigenous Collection

InformIT: New Zealand Collection

Scopus, Web of Science All databases, Australia New Zealand Reference Centre, ProQuest Health & Medical Collection also may have helpful research. Also, try local news sources like Newztext (to get newspapers and magazines) and Google to find grey literature sources on this topic with filters like; site:nz  site:govt.nz   site:org.nz   

Hedges and Search Filters:

Hedge: Medline/PubMed Health disparities and minority health search strategy 

ISSG Search Filters Resource: ISSG Search Filters Resource - Population-specific (google.com) 

Indigenous medicine: Flinders Filters - Flinders University

General search terms:

• Indigen* = indigenous, indiginaiety, indiginised, indigene, indigeneity, indigenes, indigenization
• “indigenous people” “indigenous population”
• native “native born” “native people” “native population”
• tribe

More specific search terms:

• Maori, Māori, Maaori, "indigenous New Zealander", "NZ indigenous", "Maori people", "Maori peoples"
• "Pacific Islander", Pasifika, Pasefika, Polynesian, "Pacific peoples"
• Aboriginal "Aboriginal Australian" "Torres Strait Islander" (Australia)
• "First Nation" “First Nation People” "American Indian" "Alaskan Native"  “Native American” (USA)
• Inuit, Metis, “indigenous Canadians” “North American Indians” (Canada)
• Sami (Finland)

Subject Headings: 

MeSH - Medical Subject Heading - PubMed, Medline:

• MAORI PEOPLE SCOPE: The indigenous aboriginal people of New Zealand.
• ASIAN AMERICAN NATIVE HAWAIIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER SCOPE: Members of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community.
• NATIVE HAWAIIAN OR OTHER PACIFIC ISLANDER SCOPE: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands. In the United States it is used for classification of federal government data on race and ethnicity. Race and ethnicity terms are self-identified social construct and may include terms outdated and offensive in MeSH to assist users who are interested in retrieving comprehensive search results for studies such as in longitudinal studies.
• AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER PEOPLES SCOPE: The two groups of indigenous aboriginal peoples of Australia. They include Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders. These are two distinct peoples with unique histories, languages, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs.
• AMERICAN INDIAN OR ALASKA NATIVE SCOPE: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North, South and Central Americas, and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment. In the United States it is used for classification of federal government data on race and ethnicity. Race and ethnicity terms are self-identified social construct and may include terms outdated and offensive in MeSH to assist users who are interested in retrieving comprehensive search results for studies such as in longitudinal studies.
• Indigenous Peoples SCOPE: Descendants who self-identify as members of a group who inhabited a country or region at the time when people of different cultures or ethnic origins arrived. They often maintain their distinct language, culture, and beliefs.
• Health Services, Indigenous SCOPE: Health care provided to specific cultural or tribal peoples which incorporates local customs, beliefs, and taboos.

Library Search | Ketu

Search Library Search | Ketu by subject by using subject headings such as:

• Indigenous people -- Research
• Indigenous peoples - Government policy

Or, do a Boolean search such as: "Indigenous peoples" AND health AND research

"Ngā Upoku Tukutuku was developed by the Māori Subject Headings Project, jointly sponsored by LIANZA, Te Rōpū Whakahau, and the National Library.

The tool provides a structured path to a Māori world view within library and archival cataloguing and description. It supports cataloguers and descriptive archivists to assign appropriate terms for the material, and helps users find those items within a framework they relate to.

The terms listed are not a dictionary, and shouldn’t be seen as authoritative beyond their use in libraries and archives.

New terms are developed by Te Whakakaokao, the Ngā Upoko Tukutuku Reo Māori Working Group."