From Delivery Room To Wintec: Janet Taiatini's Māori Midwifery Legacy

In a career spanning over four decades, Janet Taiatini has woven together the threads of nursing, midwifery, and Māori cultural practices to create a tapestry of care that has touched countless lives across New Zealand.

From her early days as a nurse in 1982 to becoming one of the longest-registered Māori midwives in the country, Janet's journey reflects not just her personal growth, but also the evolution of midwifery care in New Zealand.

Her story is one of dedication, cultural sensitivity, and a deep commitment to serving Māori women and their whānau.

Now, as she imparts her wisdom to the next generation of midwives at Wintec, Janet continues to bridge the gap between Western medical practices and traditional Māori birthing customs.

When Janet became a nurse, she didn’t know her heart would lead her to midwifery. But it did, and from 1988 until now Janet has been a registered midwife.

After studying to become a nurse at Manukau Polytechnic, Janet started her career at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland. She worked on several wards before eventually finding herself in the maternity ward.

“I loved working with mamas and families. I felt like I had found my place on the maternity ward.”

Janet then entered what was called a bonded programme as part of an Advanced Diploma of Nursing, she completed her midwifery practice with Middlemore paying for her course and wages on the condition that she worked for them for two years when she completed the course.

“That’s not an option now, so much has changed since I started,” Janet said.

Janet was part of the midwives who had to shift into the Lead Maternity Care (LMC) system. When that came in, she joined a collective of Māori midwives.

“We were the first group in South Auckland as a Māori contingent to get together and provide services for Māori women and whānau.”

Janet said they saw there was a need for culturally appropriate care for Māori wāhine as the current services weren’t quite meeting their needs.

“We found Māori women wanted to be able to get care at home, they wanted more whānau involvement and some wanted traditional practices, so we provided that.”

Janet said as an LMC she always stuck to home visits, even whilst taking up a new position in 2006 as a senior midwife at Lakes District Health Board (DHB).

“I liked to get to know the whole family and work out who I could rely on for different parts of care for the woman in my care. Who could take the kids to school, or if she’d had a busy night with her baby who you could call on. It’s about getting to know the whole family and who is supporting the woman at the centre.”

Since finishing up as an LMC and Senior Midwife at Lakes DHB, Janet has become part of Te Ara o Hine-Tapu Ora – Wintec’s Hamilton team of three who provide support to ākonga – working with students who are Māori and Pacific on the midwifery programme at Wintec in a pastoral care capacity.

Janet started working at Wintec in April last year and she said Wintec’s midwifery programme really embraced Māori cultural standards.

“My role is around meeting with students and seeing where they are at socially and making sure they are up to scratch with their science studies, and they are supported in all their studies. I also help connect our midwifery students with their iwi for financial support.

“I’ve also just been given the go ahead to travel to see students in the regional hubs – Tauira in Whakatane, Tauranga, and Rotorua, which is really exciting as they can sometimes feel quite isolated. Wintec has also been able to appoint local liaisons for Gisborne and Hawkes Bay as well.”

With 40 per cent of Wintec’s midwifery students being Māori, Janet has a lot of students who look to her for guidance.

When speaking about her experience over the years Janet said every baby had a nice memory attached to them.

“My favourite births were always home births and then the after care that followed with supporting whānau.

“I went and visited one of my mamas the other day who I delivered four of her five children at home. She had her last baby in hospital, and I wasn’t practicing at the time, so I wasn’t available. She recalled just being at home and she couldn’t understand hospital birth and why someone would choose it.

“I recall each time I went there to help her birth and people would just come and go all day, bringing food, and she would just be in and out, talking to people, laying down, eating. Then when she progressed, the group of people would become small. She birthed in a different place each time in that whare, a little old home in a papakāinga, a lot of whānau living in the village around. I still pop in to see her.

“I have a lot of people I keep in touch with. I often find a whānau link with my clients too which makes it even more special. It’s a lot bigger than what you imagine. Watching the babies grow up into kids and adults is such a privilege.”

One of Janet’s favourite things about her time as an LMC was that she could go anywhere, as long as she had her bag in the car, she could help you deliver.

“I’ve delivered babies in the car on the way to hospital. I remember once during school hours I delivered a baby in the front seat of my car and a young man was walking to school, he didn’t know which way to look. But I just wrapped mama and baby up and got them to the hospital in time for breakfast.”

Looking back on systemic changes, Janet recalls how courses have grown to be more tailored for midwives in New Zealand.

“As a registered nurse doing a one-year advanced diploma compared to now where midwives have their own autonomy and the Wintec programme now spans four-years.”

She said the four-year programme was introduced to spread out the workload and make it easier for students to find time for breaks and part time jobs.

“On the whole, students are finding it helpful, but it does mean another year out of work, managing that is the trick. But we have a good programme here with a good balance of online work, in person education and clinical placements.”

Janet said a lot of our young Māori ākonga (students) were coming through a kura kaupapa Māori or Wharekura environment, meaning they needed a midwifery school that met their way of learning.

“It’s about giving all people the right skills to work within Aotearoa. Here at Wintec, we are trying to do that. We are grasping the combination of Western science and a te ao Māori world view. Our curriculum is immersed in cultural values. We have a whare for our Māori students on campus where they can study and seek pastoral care. And we are teaching traditional Māori practices, our Muka Pito is an example of that.”

Next year Wintec’s midwifery programme will be evolving even further, as it transitions to the national unified programme developed by Te Pūkenga.

Janet has two boys of her own, one in England in his 40s and one at home, “our baby, he’s 22 and I have four stepchildren who are in and around. Which means lots of grandchildren which is precious,” she smiled.

About Wintec:

Wintec (Waikato Institute of Technology) is an institute of technology based in New Zealand's Waikato region. Wintec offers a wide range of degrees, diplomas and certificates. With a focus on practical, hands-on learning, Wintec is dedicated to equipping students with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in their chosen careers.

Wintec is currently part of Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology, located in region 2 of the national network.

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