Lay summary
The health system of Aotearoa, New Zealand is not meeting the needs of Māori. The injury and rehabilitation realm of health is no exception. It is a responsibility enshrined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and national legislation such as the Pae ora (Healthy futures) Act 2022 to provide equitable, culturally appropriate and responsive health services. One way of addressing these challenges in service delivery is to explore how best indigenous practices such as rokoā, and a western practice such as physiotherapy, can better support injury prevention, care and rehabilitation. Therefore, this study will use a Kaupapa Māori approach to explore the intersection between physiotherapy and rokoā Māori to reconceptualise musculoskeletal care from a Māori worldview.