As mainstream health services struggle to meet demand, a Ngāi Tahu initiative on the South Island’s West Coast is seeing treatment offered to allcomers, Newsroom reveals. Could the future for small towns with dwindling services be health care provided by Māori organisations who take it to all people? It’s an idea whose time has come, say the organisers of a novel “Wellness Day” in Reefton this month. “We had about 200 people turn up over the day – not bad for a town of 900. It shows there’s a real need out there,” says organiser Tess Hunter.

Sunnyside-Clear-Roofing-Banner-Ad