Dr Kura Lacey is a trailblazer in Māori oral health equity and a passionate advocate for kaupapa Māori approaches to healthcare. Inspired by her grandmother, Mere Brooks —a Māori nurse and hapū leader— Dr Lacey has dedicated her career to addressing systemic inequities in oral health and uplifting Māori whānau.
‘Working in the hauora Māori space is not a job, it is my reality as a Māori woman. I am inspired by my whānau, and specifically my Nan and Koko, who have always dedicated time to our Pā, our marae, our whānau, and the hauora of te iwi Māori.’
Dr Lacey serves as a Lecturer in Hauora Māori at Ōtāko Whakaihu Waka, the University of Otago where she leads the Hauora Māori curriculum across the Faculty of Dentistry. She actively teaches undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, equipping Aotearoa’s future dental workforce with the skills to engage meaningfully with Māori patients and communities. Her teaching is influenced by the legacy of Emeritus Professor John Broughton, embedding a strong commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori health equity.
Her research focuses on improving oral health service delivery for Te Arawa whānau by centering community voices and lived experiences. A recipient of the prestigious HRC Kanohi Kitea Community Development Grant in 2023, Dr Lacey collaborated with Ora Toa PHO to integrate oral health into diabetes management for Māori in Porirua. This kaupapa Māori-led project provided free dental treatment to communities and generated actionable insights for strengthening service delivery.
Beyond her research, Dr Lacey has co-authored a tamariki-focused oral health promotion book reflecting Māori values and collaborated on international studies exploring racism in oral health discourse. She also contributed to the development of NZDep23, a socioeconomic positioning tool based on the 2023 Census, and has published thought-provoking work advocating for systemic transformation underpinned by Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Dr Lacey’s governance roles include being an executive member of Te Ao Mārama (Aotearoa Māori Dental Association) and a board member of the Oral Health National Clinical Network. Her contributions extend to developing strategies and policies to grow the Māori oral health workforce and embedding equity-focused practices within the dental sector. At the University of Otago, she sits on various governance committees, ensuring that tikanga Māori and equitable outcomes remain central to decision-making.
Dr Lacey balances her professional achievements with a dedication to her whānau and is a proud mother to her daughter Olive. Through her work creating pathways for Māori-led solutions in oral health, Dr Lacey continues to inspire systemic change and promote tino rangatiratanga in Aotearoa’s health systems. She dedicated a recent 20Twenty award to her whānau, hapū and iwi and ‘all tangata whenua who have been burdened by an oral health system that has continuously failed to provide them with accessible, timely and affordable dental treatment. I always have and always will continue to advocate for Māori oral health, and this award validates that my passion for equity is worth the battle.’
Links
Whenua Magazine Issue 40, 27 September 2022 Te rau matatau o te tau - Kuramaiki Lacey-Brooks. iStudios Multimedia Limited (Full article)
10 April 2025
