A Tonga health professional's perspective on midwifery service in Aotearoa

I have highlighted the key factors in midwifery best practice that contribute to a healthy pregnancy and, currently, the best possible outcomes for both mother and baby. The maternity services need to delivered as an ethnic specific service and drive away from the economy of scale model. New Zealand need to recognise its multiculturalism and train ethnic specific midwives with strong cultural competency and high ethnic specific social literacy to maximise pregnancy outcomes for all New Zealanders. Growing up in Tonga, I was privileged to be a recipient of, Kaliloa and eyewitness to, the best maternal care and baby healthcare delivery. As a nurse and midwife, I was mentored by my own mother and by a generation of wise Tongan midwives from a previous era. Their wisdom about how to nurture and deliver the best maternal and child care is their legacy. We left the islands to come to New Zealand with the expectation of better healthcare for everyone. The dream remains--the best health outcomes for the Pacific mother and child in Aotearoa and Oceania.