Investigating principles that underlie frameworks for Pacific health research using a co-design approach: learnings from a Tongan community based project

Abstract

The New Zealand Tongan peoples’ worldview leans more towards a traditional and indigenous paradigm that encompasses the importance of family, spirituality or Christian beliefs and connection with their environment. These priorities align with core principles and values of co-design, and therefore, co-designed interventions will be better used and accepted in addressing health issues prevalent in the Tongan community. Co-design methods adapt to the cultural setting they are applied to, prioritizes the Tongan peoples’ cultural values and world views and captures the needs of the Tongan community to inform the development of the intervention. It supports family members to stand with authority, as well as place the Tongan participants at the centre of the research by including families, employing culturally safe practices, addressing the broader determinants of health, and focusing on system issues rather than on individuals.The generation of discussion in co-design further aligns with the Pacific knowledge of systems, creation stories and oral stories which provide a culturally empowering way to generate discussion and insights from the Tongan community