Globally, authorities and “experts” continually assert that suicide is a major public health concern and it is preventable. However, decades of suicide prevention strategies have seen “more of the same” action plans but no change in the upward suicide trend. Therefore, the current suicide prevention model is less relevant to indigenous and minority populations with a high suicide rate. Current ...

This paper describes the construction and initial usage of a digital library collection of historical newspapers written in the Maori language. The newspapers (Niupepa in Maori) total over 17000 individual pages from 35 separate periodicals, and were published in New Zealand during the period 1842 to 1933. They not only form a large and much needed source of Maori language text, but also provid...

By international standards New Zealand (population 3.8 x 10(6)) has a high rate of colorectal cancer, with approximately 2000 new cases occurring and approximately 1000 deaths each year. But within the New Zealand population, a lower incidence of colorectal cancer is reported for Maori than for non-Maori New Zealanders (22.2 and 43.7 per 100,000 respectively). Information from the New Zealand N...

OBJECTIVE To consider the impact of community treatment orders (CommTOs) on Maori patients and their whanau (extended family) and the associated views of mental health professionals. METHOD As a distinct aspect of a larger study of CommTOs, eight Maori patients under compulsory community care were interviewed and, where possible, members of their whanau. Associated interviews were held with t...

AIMS To determine the prevalence of functional alleles for drug metabolising genes in a sample of Maori and compare allele frequencies with Caucasians estimates. PROCEDURES DNA from 60 Maori volunteers was genotyped for cytochrome P450 polymorphisms--CYP2A6, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and CYP2D6--and allele frequencies calculated and compared with Caucasian estimates. RESULTS Absolute allele frequenc...

INTRODUCTION Although opportunities exist for positive experiences in research, Maori in New Zealand, like other indigenous people colonised by Europeans in the nineteenth century, have also been subject to research and associated policies that have had long-lasting negative consequences. Researchers have subsequently been challenged by Maori to conduct research that is acceptable, accountable ...

AIMS To estimate (a) the prevalence of gene variants associated with slow nicotine metabolism in the general Maori population and (b) nicotine intake and metabolic rate in Maori and European smokers. METHODS The procedure involved (a) genotyping 85 Maori participants for cytochrome P-450 2A6 (CYP2A6) gene variants, which are associated with reduced nicotine metabolic rate (ie CYP2A6*9 and *4)...

The maltreatment of Maori children in Aotearoa is a matter of grave concern. This report is based on the findings of a literature review which sought to gather together information covering the broad range of factors associated with, and contributing to, Maori child maltreatment. It includes prevalence data, information on inequalities for Maori, and addresses issues associated with making comp...

This exploratory research examined the contributing influence of a range of contextual and individual variables on the prediction of education, occupation and income aspirations for Maori. Such variables included parental support, parental aspirations, personality, socioeconomic status, age, and Treaty of Waitangi claims settlements. Of particular interest was determining whether Treaty of Wait...