Issue 330 - 2 October 2025

Welcome to the fortnightly Health Improvement and Innovation Digest. The Digest has links to key evidence of interest, with access to new content arranged by topic.

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Article Access

For articles that aren't open access, contact your Health NZ district library, or organisational or local library for assistance in accessing the full text. If your organisation has a subscription, you may be able to use the icon under full text links in PubMed to access the full article.

Health Equity (New Zealand)

Health Communication Needs of Southeast Asian Migrant Children in Aotearoa New Zealand: A Qualitative Study
Children, especially migrant children, face challenges in participating in health communication with health professionals worldwide. Southeast Asian migrant children possibly encounter this issue in Aotearoa New Zealand, as limited literature explores their needs, and there is a notable lack of studies considering children's perspectives. This study, published in the Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health, describes the health communication needs of New Zealand Southeast Asian migrant children (aged 7-12 years) from the children's perspective.

What works to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in hospitalisations and readmissions? Systematic review of the equity impacts of population-level, health service and integrative interventions
Inequalities exist in hospitalisation rates, which are undesirable and costly for health systems; with higher rates in populations with lower levels of income, education or residing in socioeconomically marginalised neighbourhoods where ill-health is more prevalent and preventive care is more limited. The objective of this review, published in BMJ Public Health, was to understand which interventions reduce, maintain or increase socioeconomic inequalities in hospitalisations or readmissions to aid efforts of policymakers and practitioners working to improve health equity and reduce hospital pressures.

“It is About Enabling Tino Rangatiratanga and Mana Motuhake”: An Analysis of Submissions on the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Bill 2021 Endorsing a Māori Health Authority
Indigenous leadership in healthcare is one way for Indigenous peoples to exercise sovereignty over their health. In Aotearoa New Zealand, the establishment of the Māori Health Authority (MHA) was grounded in a decades-long imperative to address Māori health inequities and operationalise te Tiriti o Waitangi within the health system. However, the populist National-led coalition government formed in November 2023 included the abolishment of the MHA in their first 100-day plan and eventually disestablished it in February 2024. This study, published in MAI Journal, analysed 155 public group submissions on the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Bill made in 2021 and representing health professionals, iwi, hapū, and community groups.

The Who, What and Why in the Provision of Non-Government Services to Koeke and Kaumātua
Little is known about non-government services (hereafter “service providers”) for elderly Māori. As part of the research project Kaumātua Futures, a case study of kaumātuatanga in Ngāti Whakaue—an iwi from the Rotorua District of Aotearoa New Zealand—a service provider scoping exercise was undertaken in the summer of 2019–2020. The purpose of the exercise, published in MAI Journal, was to garner an understanding of the number of service providers and their services available to koeke, including kaumātua, in the Rotorua District, the home base of the iwi.

Nutrition & Physical Activity (New Zealand)

Diet transformations in families: unravelling the meat reduction process with parents as change agents
Reducing meat consumption is widely regarded as sustainable and healthy. Despite its many benefits, modifying or abandoning established eating habits remains challenging for most people. This paper, published in Appetite, investigated how families change their diets. Specifically, it examines the strategies and actions that one or both parents - acting as change agents - use to facilitate dietary change, as well as household members' responses to these efforts.

Emergency Department Services (International)

Co‐Design of a Framework for Person‐Centred Care at Emergency Department Triage and Waiting Room
Patients presenting to an emergency department (ED) are typically assessed by a triage nurse and often required to wait for further assessment and care. Ongoing issues of ED overcrowding and prolonged wait times can impact the processes and patients' experiences. A person‐centred approach is recommended. This study, published in Health Expectations, aimed to develop a person‐centred care framework for use in the ED triage and waiting room.

Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes (New Zealand)

What motivates people with type 2 diabetes to maintain lifestyle changes and what challenges do they experience? A qualitative evidence synthesis
People with type 2 diabetes often find recommended lifestyle changes difficult to achieve and can find it particularly difficult to maintain these changes. It is therefore useful to explore their views and experiences about what influences them when attempting to achieve these goals. The aim of this study, published in PloS One, was to identify, appraise and synthesise qualitative studies that explore what motivates people with type 2 diabetes to maintain lifestyle changes over time and the challenges they experience.

Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes (International)

Impact of emergency fast track on treatment time and outcomes in acute stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis
This review, published in BMC Emergency Medicine, aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of emergency fast track in improving the efficiency of acute stroke management and enhancing clinical outcomes, thereby providing evidence-based support for optimising emergency care workflows.

Primary Health Care (New Zealand)

Are long-term care systems aligned with person-centered integrated care? Evidence from the Western Pacific
Many Western Pacific countries have established long-term care (LTC) systems to support their rapidly aging populations. However, the extent to which these systems align with integrated care principles that enable individuals to age in place (AIP) remains unclear. Effective integration of LTC with healthcare is essential to enhance continuity of care, improve outcomes, and support AIP. This study, published in Health Policy, examines the alignment of LTC policies in five Western Pacific countries—Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, and Singapore—with integrated LTC principles.

Health in justice or health injustice? Indigenous Māori experiences of primary care following release from New Zealand prisons: a national record study
Indigenous Māori experience mass imprisonment in New Zealand secondary to colonisation, coloniality and racism. In addition to high risks of morbidity and mortality, community re-entry from prison presents multiple challenges to accessing healthcare and other critical services. In New Zealand's publicly funded health and disability system, primary care acts as the entry point and gatekeeper to secondary services, facilitating linkages to other supports. Guided by lived experience and using deidentified linked national administrative data, this study, published in Social Science & Medicine, examined the primary care experiences of Māori over the 12-months post-release from prison.

Primary Health Care (International)

Impact of emergency simulation training in primary care: a rapid review
Primary care is increasingly exposed to acutely unwell patients and there is an increasing responsibility of primary care physicians to be well-equipped to manage medical emergencies. One means of training primary care staff is through simulation training; however, emergency simulation training in primary care is not well established. The objective of this study, published in the Journal of Primary Health Care, was to conduct a rapid literature review of studies looking at the use and impacts of emergency care simulation training in primary care.

Primary Mental Health (New Zealand)

Drug harm prevention needs among adolescents in Aotearoa New Zealand: findings from the Youth19 Survey
Drug use (including tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs) is a leading cause of premature death, health loss and health inequities in Aotearoa New Zealand. Effective prevention and early intervention have potential to reduce drug-related human suffering across the lifecourse, thus decreasing pressure on health and social services. The aim of this study, published in The New Zealand Medical Journal, was to investigated drug harm indicators among secondary students in Aotearoa and identified sub-populations at greatest need.

Increased Immunisation (International)

Facilitators to strengthening vaccine uptake post-pandemic amongst underserved populations considering social norms and health beliefs: a global systematic review
Reasons for low vaccine uptake include personal, physical, and societal barriers, which are not well understood for specific underserved communities, particularly ethnic minority and migrant groups. This review, published in Vaccine, explores gaps to understanding low vaccination uptake in underserved populations globally and summarises key determinants associated with vaccination uptake considering social norms and health beliefs.

Smoking Cessation (New Zealand)

How Do People Who Smoke Respond to Novel Tobacco Pack Warnings? Two Cross-Sectional Studies from Aotearoa New Zealand
On-pack pictorial warning labels (PWLs) typically feature graphic health risks of smoking. This study, published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, examined whether expanding the themes featured could increase PWLs' potential effectiveness.

Smoking Cessation (International)

Using social media for addressing vaping among young people in the Pacific Small Island Developing States: a systematic review
Vaping is now the most common form of nicotine use among young people, despite potential harms. The Western Pacific region (WPR) has one of the highest numbers of young vapers among the World Health Organization (WHO) regions. This is concerning as the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) within the WPR are home to some of the most vulnerable nations in the world. Social media has been demonstrated by previous research as an effective medium for influencing the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of young people about the harms associated with vaping. However, these studies have been conducted in high-income countries, and to our knowledge, no social media interventions addressing vaping among young people have been tested within the PSIDS. Therefore, this review, published in Pacific Health Dialog, aims to explore the effectiveness of using social media for addressing vaping among young people, identify features associated with success and consider the applicability of this study to the PSID region.

Health Workforce (New Zealand)

The toll of care – a study of burnout in Pacific doctors
This study, published in Pacific Health Dialog, aims to identify the level of burnout, risk factors and preventative strategies amongst Pacific doctors.

Key Ministry of Health Publications

Health and Independence Report 2024
The Health and Independence Report draws on a range of data and indicators to provide an overview of the health and wellbeing of New Zealanders and the performance of the health system.

Putting Patients First: Modernising health workforce regulation: Summary of submissions
Regulating the health workforce is essential to ensuring that health practitioners are qualified, competent and provide safe care. The Government is reviewing how we can modernise health workforce regulation to better support patients and providers. The focus is on how changes to regulation can improve efficiency while maintaining safety and public confidence. A discussion document titled Putting Patients First: Modernising health workforce regulation was developed by the Government and feedback was sought between 28 March and 30 April 2025. Analysis of these views is provided in four main sections: views on patient-centred regulation views on streamlined regulation views on right-sized regulation views on future-proofed regulation.

Ministry of Health Consultations & Events

Consultation on Amendments to the Specified Prescription Medicines List for Designated Pharmacist Prescribers
The Ministry of Health wants to hear your feedback on the proposed amendments to the specified prescription medicines list for designated pharmacist prescribers. Please submit your feedback on the proposed amendments by 17 October 2025.

Consultation on Amendments to the Specified Prescription Medicines List for Designated Registered Nurse Prescribers in Primary Health and Specialty Teams
The Ministry of Health wants to hear your feedback on proposed amendments to the lists of specified prescription medicines and controlled drugs for designated registered nurse prescribers in primary health and specialty teams. Please submit your feedback on the proposed amendments by 17 October 2025.

Health Sector Initiative

New CT technology to improve patient care and access in Christchurch
For the first time in public hospitals across Australasia, patients will benefit from increased access and faster, higher-resolution imaging as part of Health New Zealand’s digital innovation programme aimed at improving patient outcomes. The very first new “Photon Counting” CT (PCCT) scanner in New Zealand will today begin operating at Christchurch Hospital. The scanner is a key element of Health New Zealand’s focus on using advances in technology to improve patient care.

The information available on or through this newsletter does not represent Ministry of Health policy. It is intended to provide general information to the health sector and the public, and is not intended to address specific circumstances of any particular individual or entity.