Disgruntled employees, allegations of misconduct, personal grievances – even breaches of its government-funded social service contracts – are some of the issues plaguing Dunedin health organisation Te Kāika.
Rob Kidd reveals details from a year-long investigation.
*Some names have been changed to protect identities
Te Kāika was established as a ‘‘one-stop health shop’’ for community care, an irresistible kaupapa that attracted some of the region’s top Māori professionals.
It has grown massively in recent years, picking up millions of dollars in funding to provide low-cost health and social services, primarily to Māori, Pasifika and low-income whanau.
As well as primary healthcare, Te Kāika offers dental services, mental health and addiction support, and a migrant and refugee service, and operates transition support for 16 to 21-year-olds who have been in care or youth justice placements.
Its shiny new Caversham Wellbeing Hub opened to much fanfare on May 2 last year.
Attended by Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora bosses and Ministry of Social Development bigwigs, the opening was billed as the culmination of a dream 20 years in the making.
Some staff gave up lucrative jobs overseas to return to their tūrangawaewae, to give something back to their people; to be part of something bigger than themselves.
A look at the website – up until late June when it was updated, following inquiries by the Otago Daily Times – appeared to show many of them were still employed.
But in the past couple of years, staff have left in droves.
Some have been paid out over personal grievances, others say they became disenchanted, burnt out by what they felt was mismanagement by those in charge. The ODT has spoken to numerous current and former Te Kāika employees, all of whom were too concerned about the potential repercussions to be named.
They voiced a range of concerns – not about the underlying ethos of the charity but about the workplace.
All the people interviewed though, who included senior employees at other agencies, were unreservedly positive about the vision.
And how could they not be?
A low-cost service, cutting through the administrative red tape, allowing our community’s most vulnerable members to access vital services at a single location.
For many employees it was that which made leaving difficult.
Several spoke about hanging on only because of their belief in the value of the work, as well as the love they had for their colleagues.
But for some there came a tipping point when the strain became overwhelming.
‘‘The sad thing is, working for a Māori organisation, a lot of us really tried to come into the space to do good things for our people,’’ one source said, but they felt management did not allow them to do that.
Board chairwoman of Otakou Health Ltd (the charity which founded Te Kāika) Donna Matahaere-Atariki wrote a statement in response to a range of questions posed by the ODT.
She said the organisation was delivering ‘‘excellent healthcare services’’ and expressed surprise there would be any associated negativity.
Any question ‘‘based around a rumour from an anonymous source’’ would not be answered, Ms Matahaere-Atariki said.
Highlanders deal
In May 2022, Te Kāika announced its ground-breaking three-year sponsorship of the Highlanders – an unlikely marriage of charity health provider and professional rugby outfit.
Chief executive at the time Albie Laurence rationalised it as increasing Te Kāika’s profile and widening awareness about the importance of immunisation following the Covid-19 crisis.
He was pictured, arms laden with rugby balls, in front of a bevy of rugby players and grinning children.
Over his right shoulder were Ms Matahaere-Atariki and her son Matt Matahaere, side by side.
The latter, who was chief Māori adviser at the time, offered up a soundbite in a subsequent media release.
‘‘We share the same values as the Highlanders, particularly around building a culture, because this is where your values come through. Culture is the shadow that values leave behind,’’ he said.
The following month, there was an abrupt cultural shift at Te Kāika.
Mr Laurence, who played a pivotal role in co-founding the organisation, was gone, and stepping into the void was Mr Matahaere.
The change was sudden and Mr Laurence never spoke about his departure at the time or over the ensuing three and a-half years.
In his first interview as chief executive, Mr Matahaere described his predecessor as ‘‘amazing’’ but quickly turned his focus to the future and the plans for the Wellbeing Hub, an integrated healthcare and social services facility in Caversham.
‘‘Change is always good,’’ he said.
But some of the staff at Te Kāika would go on to disagree
After a few months in the role, it became clear to many staff Mr Matahaere’s reign as chief executive would be different from his predecessor’s.
As the grand opening for the hub approached last year, there was the predictable torrent of online meetings with stakeholders.
The ODT has been provided with a photo of one such forum showing at least eight people in business attire.
Then there is Mr Matahaere shirtless.
His mother conceded it was a bad look but stressed it only came about because of his diligence.
‘‘Mr Matahaere agrees that in hindsight this clothing choice did not reflect the professional standards that he endeavours to maintain. However, to be fair to Mr Matahaere he was on holiday and at short notice asked to attend the call whilst sitting on a beach with whānau,’’ she said.
First impressions
Jim* felt Mr Matahaere initially created a good impression at work.
‘‘He wasn’t trying to micromanage us … just trying to get people with expertise,’’ he said.
Like many others, Jim was drawn to the lofty goals of the Te Kāika project, the opportunity to really help his people.
Meaningful work.
And the buy-in by staff was infectious.
‘‘The majority stayed because of the people we worked with,’’ he said.
But Jim felt the ‘‘cloak of care’’ – Te Kāika’s philosophical touchstone – and the people-first rhetoric did not always extend to its staff.
Many former employees approached by the ODT were unable to comment on their time at Te Kāika because it is understood they had signed non-disclosure agreements after resolution of their personal grievances and associated pay-outs.
Terms of such contracts mean they would be legally barred from making any disparaging comments about the organisation or discussing the circumstances of their departure.
But documents regarding some cases were seen by the ODT.
They detailed allegations of aggressive behaviour and bullying towards staff.
‘‘OHL promotes the organisation as one which operates under te ao Māori principles. However, the treatment [the employee] has endured, and the steps taken to attempt to dismiss him do not reflect those principles,’’ one document alleged.
The staff member had been lured to Te Kāika from overseas because of his belief in the vision but had been left disillusioned, the personal grievance said.
‘‘Instead of being raised up, mentored and motivated he has instead been bullied and ridiculed … to breaking point,’’ it claimed.
‘‘In general, [he] is disappointed that an organisation such as OHL would allow a young Māori … (or any employee) to be treated in that way that he has experienced. [He] saw OHL and its services as an organisation that would want to promote and support young Māori leaders in the community.’’
In a statement to the ODT, Ms Matahaere-Atariki refused to address the allegations of an adverse workplace culture or the claims of bullying.
Both questions elicited the same response.
‘‘We will not comment on gossip, rumours and anonymous sources.’’
Any criticism of the chief executive was unwarranted, Ms Matahaere-Atariki said.
‘‘The board is pleased with the new sense of accountability, transparency and reporting set in place by Mr Matahaere.’’
Climbing the ladder
When Mr Matahaere addressed the Christchurch Hip Hop Summit as a guest speaker a few months before his swift elevation to his current role he was asked for advice about building community.
His reply: ‘‘Lift as you climb.
‘‘If you don’t bring others with you, what we’ll do is get to a bottleneck where we have a culture that’s disconnected from the young people coming through. So if you’re in a position of power, your role is to push resources out and bring others up. And if you’re not doing that then sometimes I think we need to reassess where we are and what we want to do in life,’’ he said.
But as Mr Matahaere climbed the ranks to top the ladder at Te Kāika, instead of being lifted, some of those beneath him fell off.
‘‘When we moved into the hub, that’s when it all really fell to pieces for the clinic, I think,’’ a former member of the primary health team said.
Another felt the restructure that followed ‘‘culled everyone [Mr Matahaere] couldn’t control’’.
The ODT understands it resulted in seven personal grievances through which outgoing staff were paid out.
Despite the charity shelling out, Ms Matahaere-Atariki said Te Kāika ensured it followed ‘‘due process with regard to all employment transactions’’.
‘‘We underwent a restructure following the appointment of Mr Matahaere as chief executive to bring about greater efficiencies and economies of scale and ensure we were best positioned to deliver on KPIs.’’
She said the figure of $260,000 listed as ‘‘termination benefits’’ in the most recent audit included the appointment of expert legal and human resources consultants as well as other associated costs.
Ms Matahaere-Atariki said the Employment Relations Authority had recorded a high rate of such claims being successful, and industry groups had noted a 50-60% ‘‘surge’’ in employer requests for restructuring support, ‘‘reflecting broader workforce pressures and organisational change nationwide’’.
When asked how many staff had been paid out since Mr Matahaere’s appointment, she declined to provide a number.
Nor would she tell the ODT how many resignations there have been in the past three years.
Ms Matahaere-Atariki instead chose to focus on the broader picture.
‘‘Te Kāika is not alone in facing recruitment challenges,’’ Ms Matahaere-Atariki said.
‘‘It is common knowledge that New Zealand’s healthcare sector is facing critical recruitment challenges … highlighting the urgent need for sustainable, long-term strategies to train, attract and retain staff to maintain effective healthcare delivery’’.
AS the ODT’s inquiries into Te Kāika progressed, the resistance grew.
After a staff member was interviewed at her home, Mr Matahaere wrote complaining about the approach and supposed access to ‘‘confidential personal details’’.
He said he was ‘‘deeply troubled by the implication that [the reporter] may have accessed our internal staff database or obtained details through inappropriate means’’.
The name of the employee was on Te Kāika’s website and her address was publicly available through the electoral roll.
Shortly after the incident, a source provided the phone number of an embattled Te Kāika doctor.
When Mr Matahaere discovered the GP had been contacted, he called the ODT and voiced his concern, suggesting illegal methods had been employed.
‘‘It wouldn’t be the first time that reporters have got into trouble for hacking into systems and getting people’s numbers, right?’’ he said.
‘‘Well, you do have an English accent, right? So, Daily Mail UK. I mean, it goes hand in hand, doesn’t it?’’
After being reassured there had been no illicit technological trickery involved, Mr Matahaere invited the ODT to meet him at The Hub.
‘‘I’m always open to engage with media, I’m always open for a coffee, bro. Let’s just be honest, mate, and we’d always just put everything on the table,’’ he said.
But that offer was quickly rescinded and by April a Christchurch PR professional became the contact point for all media inquiries.
Mr Matahaere would not meet for an interview, she said.