Righting health wrongs needs insight into how people think and practise

Reporter Virginia McMillan finds out what cultural competence means for the leaders of the Medical Council and Te ORA, the Maori Medical Practitioners Association. The two organisations hosted a national symposium on the subject last month, attracting 140 people to Wellington; the medical colleges, PHOs and DHBs all had people taking part. The council describes the symposium as a first step in an initiative that is key to its strategic direction to protect the public, "by supporting doctors to improve their cultural competence, increase partnership with Maori and create greater health equity"