Tuberculosis and the Māori People of the Wairoa District

im from wairoa and i contacted TB i caught from my mum who had already had one of her lungs removed. Fortunately for me new drugs have been administered to me and i was saved i remember time spent at Gisborne hospital TB ward at Wairoa The long walk down that ominous and isolated corridor down to the Xray machine i though i was going to die. yes that film was exactly how it was for our family the housing build by the Maori affairs help alleviate the problem. But unfortunately we are slipping back poor health,unaffordable housing,food,unemployment, all help to bring these diseases back.

I was a TB sufferer. I caught it from my mum who had a lung removed. Fortunately new drugs came onto the scene, and I was cured but I spent days at Gisborne hospital and at the Wairoa TB ward. I remember going down that long ominous isolated corridor to the x-ray machine at the Wairoa hospital. All the scenarios mentioned in the film are true as far as my family are concerned, and with new Māori affairs houses being built Māori health improved. But unfortunately we are slipping backwards and if we if take our eyes off the ball diseases like TB will appear again.

My mother spend approx 18 months in Harvey Ward at the Wairoa Hospital with TB transferring to Wellington to have three-quarters of a lung removed. She kept a diary during her time at Harvey Ward - the people who came and went, the nursing staff etc. Makes fascinating reading

My mums family are from Waikaremoana and they were a family with TB. My uncle spent time in the TB sanitorium at Waipukurau, my grand mother died from TB and my mother also contracted TB as a child. She was taken to Mangatuna on the East Coast and when she returned was apparently 'cured'. Her doctors suspected that her early TB raised its head again weeks prior to her death in 2002 but due to her death from smoking related illness no definitive prognosis was made.

My dad was born in Iwitea back in 1927 I think. My grandfather Richard Ehau Mahanga died through complications with TB.Wow, such an insightful film.

I enjoyed watching these 2 films especially the 2nd one,my uncle Mahuika and aunty Moana are in it what a find.How things have changed since then.

Stumbled on this - what a classic. I was born in Wairoa in 1953. This a gem of a snapshot on the society and development of the area. Sir Turi Carroll is a respected icon of the town. I loved seeing and hearing about the town, people and areas.