ACC received this year’s Te Tohu mō Whai Ratonga, Maori Crowd Award at the Te Hāpai Hapori, the Spirit of Service Awards, for establishing its Rongoā Māori Service.

“This is a huge honour for our team, and I want to thank and acknowledge the many people who have helped build our Rongoā Māori Service over the past four years,” ACC’s Head of Māori Health Services Design Eldon Paea said. 

“Offering rongoā as a rehabilitation service is part of our continuing efforts to deliver equity for Māori.”  

The awards, run by Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission, recognise public servants who go the extra mile and celebrate initiatives that deliver great outcomes for New Zealanders.”  

The government agency claimed the award ahead of the City Rail Link Ltd for the Mana Whenua Forum and the Te Ministry of Justice (Tāhū o te Ture) for Whakaorangia te Mana Tangata. 

Eldon Paea, ACC’s Head of Māori Health Services Design, said the win at Te Hāpai Hapori recognises that their work is making a difference.   

“It presents injured Māori, and all New Zealanders, with more choice in their recovery options and is a positive step towards delivering equity for tangata whenua. 

“We’d also like to acknowledge our fellow finalists – the City Rail Link and Te Tāhū o te Ture, the Ministry of Justice – for the great work they are doing.” 

Te Tohu mō Whai Ratonga celebrates outstanding public service contributions to supporting Māori Crown relationships through auahatanga (innovation), whakapūmautanga (durability) and kōwhiringa (opportunities).  

“The Rongoā Māori Service exemplifies a commitment to protecting rongoā as a taonga and ensuring equitable access to services and experiences, leading to better health outcomes for Māori,” stated Te Kawa Mataaho in its summary of finalists. 

Rongoā has been available through ACC as a rehabilitation service since 2020 and has helped over 11,000 ACC kiritaki (clients) across the motu. 

ACC’s focus on innovation and desire to provide opportunities for rongoā Māori saw them host the first Rongoā Māori Conference in Rotorua in May this year. The event brought together more than 400 rongoā practitioners, health providers and other members of the health community to raise awareness of rongoā and ACC’s rongoā Māori service.  

“We wanted to bring together our health providers and rongoā practitioners to share, learn and see how we can work together to meet all the needs of our communities,” said Paea.  

“It was a great opportunity to whakawhanaunga (build relationships) and grow understanding of traditional Māori healing and its place in Aotearoa New Zealand’s health sector.”  

ACC research shows Māori are more likely to sustain a serious injury than non-Māori but less likely to make an injury claim. 

Māori clients generally account for 12.5 per cent of new claims volumes annually but account for 16.7 per cent of the population. 

ACC data shows rongoā Māori claim volumes were 1.5 times higher in the 12 months to August 2024 (7,888 claims) than in August 2023 (5,308 claims). 

“Over the past four years, Rongoā Māori, through ACC, has given people an option they didn’t have before. We want to continue building that and help New Zealanders recover from injury.”  

The Driver Licensing Improvement Programme, one of ACC’s cross-agency projects, took out Te Tohu mō ngā Hua E Pai Ake Ana, the Better Outcomes Award.  

The programme also went on to win Te Tohu a te Pirimia, the Prime Minister’s Award, selected from the winners of three categories. 

“It has everything,” said New Zealand’s Prime Minister, the Rt Hon. Christopher Luxon. 

“It’s a new initiative. It’s delivering great results. It’s great value for money. And it’s a collaborative effort between agencies.”  

The win recognises the programme’s impact on communities across the motu, opening doors to employment, education, support for whānau and healthcare, and enabling more people to become safe licenced drivers. 

ACC shared the honour with partners Waka Kotahi | NZ Transport Agency, Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora | Ministry of Social Development, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa | New Zealand Police, Te Puni Kōkiri | Ministry of Māori Development and Te Manatū Waka | Ministry of Transport.