Lay summary
From the relationship between Tāngata Whenua and Tāngata Tiriti stems the right to equitable health and wellbeing for Māori and demands Māori self-determination across all spheres. Responsiveness to Māori in Health research in Aotearoa must allow Māori researchers to self-determine as guided by whānau, iwi and hapū. Funders and researchers must address mana tāngata, through active partnerships and accountability by using relevant knowledge to transform health services and policies, workforce research capability and leadership. Currently, research involving hospitals and health care services under Te Whatu Ora (formerly DHBs) requires localities approval. Variation across locality approval processes including Māori review, leads to poor ethical practice and extensive work for researchers particularly in multi-site research, lending itself to outcomes that impact poorly on Māori health. Kaupapa Māori research methods will be employed to develop a policy framework to address health research review processes for Māori across publicly funded health service delivery contexts.