ProCare and Le Va announce partnership for collective impact in Pacific healthcare

Le Va, a Pacific primary prevention NGO, and leading healthcare provider, ProCare, are delighted to announce a partnership to improve health equity and Pacific healthcare in Tāmaki Makaurau.

Chief Executives Bindi Norwell and Denise Kingi-‘Ulu’ave sign a memorandum of understanding

This formal partnership is the result of several years of working together and alongside each other to support Pacific families. Some of the activities this partnership will support include workforce development, co-designing Pacific models of care, and collaborating to address health and wellbeing.

Bindi Norwell, ProCare Group CEO, says, “This partnership is a natural progression of how closely ProCare and Le Va have been working together over the last few years, so we are delighted to recognise this with a formal agreement.”

Le Va is part of the Wise Group, one of the largest providers of mental health, addiction and wellbeing services in Aotearoa New Zealand, which has many social support services that will benefit ProCare families. “We both share very similar goals and aspirations for uplifting the health and wellbeing of our Pacific kāinga (family), so we hope that working together will help us get there faster,” concludes Norwell.

Viv Pole, Head of Pacific Health at ProCare, says, “Le Va has built strong connections with Pacific people over many years, so is a trusted leader in this space. Their team has a wealth of knowledge and resources we can tap into to support both our communities and our GP practices.

“One of ProCare’s areas of focus is workforce development. We have been supporting our practice staff, particularly in areas with high Pacific and Māori populations, to increase their confidence and competency in engaging with these communities. We are excited to work with Le Va to offer a fantastic online cultural training programme tailored for our healthcare practices across the network through this partnership,” says Pole.

Le Va Chief Executive, Denise Kingi-‘Ulu’ave, says, “At Le Va we work alongside the services and in our communities to deliver mental health, addiction, public health, suicide prevention, disability, youth wellbeing and violence prevention social sectors to develop flourishing Pasifika communities who are reaching their full potential.

“The support, resources and knowledge that ProCare and Le Va can share through this partnership will help us collectively impact more of our Pacific kāinga. We are excited to formalise this valued partnership today.” concludes Kingi-‘Ulu’ave.

A signing ceremony was held at the ProCare offices on August 14, signifying the official start of the partnership agreement. ProCare and Le Va look forward to sharing more about the partnership activities in due course.