Point-of-care testing: Improving access to timely and safe care for rural whānau

Whānau living in rural Aotearoa New Zealand have barriers to appropriate and timely health care, resulting in preventable harm and death. To overcome these barriers, this Kaupapa Māori project brings whānau-centred diagnostic testing and development and adaptation of appropriate and sustainable care pathways to communities of the East Coast, Te Kaha and Wairoa. This Iwi-community-researcher partnership proposes innovative Point of Care (PoC) PCR-based testing to improve access to timely and safe care for our rural whānau. We will offer on-site testing for common viral and bacterial infections including Strep A, Flu, COVID-19, RSV, Chlamydia, and Gonorrhoea, and measure the impact on clinical care pathways and health outcomes. If effective this mixed-methods study will reduce preventable harm and death and contribute to national and international models of community-based testing, developed with an Indigenous lens.