Do current government policies foster Māori-led suicide intervention approaches?

For the past seven years I have worked in suicide prevention including postvention, awareness, education, and intervention. I am a registered counsellor specialising in suicide bereavement and I am one of a handful of Kaupapa Māori providers in this field. This research is significant because suicide is everyone’s business and the need to address the over-representation of Māori suicide rates is a pressing public health issue. My research method will comprise of a Kaupapa Māori literature review that is coupled with a small sample group of five (n=5) one-on-one, semi-structured in-depth interviews. The participants are Māori policymakers and practitioners involved in the development or implementation of rangatahi / youth suicide prevention policies. The potential health benefits of this research could save lives by influencing future policy development that will better serve the needs of Māori in terms of health, wellbeing, and addressing culturally appropriate suicide prevention strategies in Aotearoa .