06 August 2019

The Ministry of Health recently released a publication to ensure equity is at the front and centre of all newly-commissioned work in the health sector.

The Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield talks about equity and ensuring equity is at the forefront of everything the health sector does.

“Equity’ is quite a refined term. We might know what it means, we might have a definition. However, what we should do is think about what it means for citizens, for New Zealanders, because everybody has the right to good health," says Dr Bloomfield.

“In Aotearoa New Zealand, people have differences in health that are not only avoidable but unfair and unjust. Equity recognises different people with different levels of advantage require different approaches and resources to get equitable health outcomes.”

“That definition of equity has generated a lot of commentary from people during the conversations we've had. They're happy with its focus on health outcomes.”

“The definition is designed so it can be readily applied to work across the health and disability system, guiding what we to do to make health care more equitable for all New Zealanders.”

"We all benefit from having a healthier population.”

The publication process involved speaking to many health sector representatives, including Māori and Pacific leaders, community providers, those in the disability sector, advocacy groups, and clinical groups.

The report analyses and presents those thoughts, ideas, and aspirations people in health sector have when it comes to achieving equity.

You can access the publication ‘Achieving Equity in Health Outcomes: Summary of a Discovery Phase’ here or watch Dr Ashley Bloomfield in this video highlighting the importance of equity.

Dr Bloomfield signed-off the Ministry of Health formal definition of equity in February 2019.

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