Sharon Shea
Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Hako
Ms Shea has significant governance and leadership experience across the health, disability and community sectors. She has a BA/LLB (Auckland) and a Masters in Comparative Social Policy (Distinction) from Oxford University.
She is has been a Board member and Sub-Committee Chair at both Auckland DHB and Northland DHB, and several primary health, community health and private sector organisations.
She was Chair of the Māori Expert Advisory Group on the Health and Disability Sector Review, and has previously been involved in regional and national roles in Māori health strategy, funding, Māori provider and workforce development (as part of government sector agencies).
Ms Shea’s experience is extensive in the health sector, and she also offers experience across education, corrections, justice, social services and broader Māori development/Whanau Ora and Whanau Resilience/Manawaroa.
Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Hako
Aotearoa, New Zealand’s health and disability system has not delivered te Tiriti-inspired, and equitable outcomes to, with and for Māori. Some gains have been made, but they are not systemic or consistent. The establishment of the Māori Health Authority is a response to successive failures of the system and a growing call by Māori and others, for the system to fulfil the promise of te Tiriti.
This is the first time in our history that an entity like the MHA has been established, and there are already calls for a similar entity in the fields of education, social services and other. There are significant expectations on the Authority to make a difference and to do it quickly. This presentation will outline why the MHA was established, its role, where it is headed, its levers for change, and its priorities which include tackling bias, discrimination and racism.
