Through the barriers

Inaugural chief executive of the new Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People Paula Tesoriero shares insight into the new agency and the significance of her appointment.

Matt Shand | Journalist

Doctors and specialists listening to disabled people will play a critical role in ensuring quality of life and equity for disabled people and whānau, newly appointed chief executive of Whaikaha Paula Tesoriero says.

Her success on the bike as a Paralympian, winning gold in the 2008 Beijing games, is matched by success in the legal sector and now the public sector - becoming the first person who identifies as a disabled person to be appointed as a chief executive for a public service agency in New Zealand.

“At a full chief executive meeting last week, I did sit there and realise the significance of having a disabled person at the table along with the others responsible for delivering public services to New Zealand,” she said.

“It really crystallised to me the importance of Whaikaha in implementing change across this level of government.

“It’s significant to me personally but it’s significant for our entire community. We have this entity and role now to transform and make the changes many people with disabilities have been fighting for.”

“Many, many disabled people have fought for the development of our agency and we’re finally here and we have a lot of work to do building the organisation and starting to deliver some change.”

Whaikaha is a new ministry with a difficult task ahead of it. Coinciding with the recent reforms to the health system, Whaikaha aims to remove the barriers that prevent disabled people and their whānau from achieving ordinary life outcomes.

Previously, a fragmented approach with multiple eligibility criteria for different services with different agencies has made the system difficult to navigate and services hard to access.

Top of Whaikaha’s mandate is removing traditional barriers that have blocked access or locked people out from accessing support. Tesoriero says disabled people have been calling for changes and improvements in the areas of education and access to health for a long time now.

“Disabled people face different access barriers,” she says. “There are barriers around cost, around transport and to quality of health care as a result.”

“The New Zealand Health Survey really crystallises information about these barriers. Things like 16 per cent of disabled adults have not visited a GP - which is twice the number of non-disabled adults.”

Tesoriero says another major barrier is a lack of understanding and empathy towards a person’s disability from medical professionals.

“No one really knows their impairment better than a disabled person themselves,” she said.

“It’s important to listen, to respect disabled people when they talk about the effect on them. This has a real impact. The stories I have heard when things have not gone well stem from a perceived idea about the impact an impairment has on a person’s life.

“Taking the time to listen is where I have seen things flourish. Medical professionals have to set out to understand the individual and try to support them getting access to a wide range of things they need.

“Doctors and the medical profession have a huge role to play and can be wonderful allies.”

A key change Whaikaha advocates for, is giving disabled people greater say in how services are provided to them.

“Instead of deciding how it will be done, we will work with people to ask what help they believe will make a difference and find ways to help fund that,” Tesoriero said.

“Many, many disabled people have fought for the development of our agency and we’re finally here and we have a lot of work to do building the organisation and starting to deliver some change.”