Whānau hui

...I think too they [hui] can support [whānau], they support patient... by taking on board what’s been told so when they go home, they usually have a meeting and talk about what’s been discussed at the consultation. Also, for them to know what services are out there as well, that can benefit the patient.... Sometimes it’s just a whānau hui but if they want me to be part of that then I’m more than happy to do that.”

I think what we look at in terms of the hospice and they [gangs] come in the door is we have to mediate that... And to actually bring them to consensus with, you know, ‘what happens in your whare happens in your whare, but this is our whare and this is how we [do things]’. And that sort of things you know what I mean? And we’ve done that here. Like for instance, some gang members come in there and you had a [name of gang] and a [name of gang] … Well it’s a thing that is, ‘Okay, hei konei. Your thing is about your thing, nē? And this is the whare… so you come here for… those things, all the other differences [are] outside. Your gang differences, leave it outside with your boots.’… Well, they seem to respect that; they’re coming in too now and remove their patch… but you do get kaki maro, you know, people who don’t want to move from that thing. And I think communication is, you know… how you sort of communicate to them is you explain to them, I think… that’s an art in itself, isn’t it?

Okay, when I’ve walked in… gone through the introductory [side] and then the family are gathered around there but the… moment I’ve opened my mouth and said something [told them who I was] the family have settled and calmed down and felt like they were in good hands. Suddenly within five minutes I have been able to just, yeah, allow them to be.

[W]hen he got sick, they [people] said, ‘He needs to be eating… things that will oxidate you.’ So, they go through that. And I said to them, ‘What I learned from the specialist is that it’s the factory that’s broken… And we can’t fix the factory you know. It can’t be renovated, it’s the factory. It doesn’t matter what you put through the factory, it’ll never get any better, it’ll always be there. All we can do is try and manage it'... I said to him [the specialist], ‘What do you mean? I’ve read all these books. Tell me what you’re saying.’ And he said to me… ‘This is my simplest way [of explaining it]; the factory is broken. You can’t fix it. But what I can suggest is that we can try a drug that will help manage it… Nothing else is going to do it.' So, when my mokopunas are sitting there going, ‘But Nan, can they renovate the factory?’ And I say, ‘No, they can’t. It’s [his] body and that’s where it is. And Papa can’t be renovated. But what we can do is try this [drug and] see whether it’s improved Papa’s lifestyle and see whether we can support it.  I’m not saying we don’t eat beetroot; I’m just saying that we need to do a few other things to get to that stage’.