Te Rangimaria Warbrick has over 20 years of experience in addiction and health services. His passion arises from his lived experience of addiction and the importance of including Māori cultural imperatives in delivering addiction support services in our communities. He brings Kaupapa Māori initiatives to the forefront of efforts to address the country’s mental health crisis.

Te Rangimaria recognises that most social workers, nurses, educators, and others working in the caring professions received training through a typical Western education system. Moreover, he teaches processes through which kaimahi can learn about and implement Kaupapa Māori models of practice in the mahi they do.

In recent years, he has taught the Kaitiakitanga: Postgraduate Diploma in Bicultural Professional Supervision programme offered by Te Wānanga o Aotearoa in Tauranga. The program uses mātauranga Māori as the core to teach students how to make a positive difference as kaitaiki – supervisors in their respective professions.

Currently, he is the program lead for the Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Mental Health and Addiction Counselling at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi in Whakatāne. This diploma is designed to support the development of the mental health workforce within whānau, hapū, iwi, and other communities and industries. It provides students with advanced clinical and cultural skills to support those dealing with mental health and addiction issues.

He enjoys that students create their own mana-enhancing models of practice to support them in their professions and the mahi they do within their communities.

Ka eke ai te kōrero … tēnā tātou katoa, tēnā tātou ka toa!

Links:

Experience drives kaiako

Kaupapa Māori front and centre in new mental health training programme

Te Aroha o te Hauangiangi: Māori perspectives on healing from substance abuse 

Taming the taniwha of addiction

Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Mental Health and Addiction Counselling