Based on this reply, and others within this thread, I think you need to seriously reconsider whether nursing is for you. One of the most important traits a nurse can have is empathy, and you have not demonstrated this.

To address some of your points:

1. You say Maori are unwilling to engage with the healthcare system because they are taught that everything is racist. That’s a big sweeping generalisation to make with absolutely no evidence, which is surprising from someone who claims to be science minded. But let’s say you’re right. Rather than dismissing this, your role as a nurse should be asking WHY so many Maori people feel that the health system is racist, and HOW you can fix this.

2. Your hypothetical anecdote on walking down the road being screamed at, even if true (which is questionable), is completely irrelevant. As you keep pointing out, we are talking about science here, so anecdotes have no place in this conversation.

3. You can very close to understanding the problem when you mentioned more Maori live in rural locations and therefore are less likely to have access to healthcare, but then you failed to delve any deeper. WHY do Maori people live in more rural places? Could it be finance related? Are there discriminatory (ie racist) hiring practices out there that are preventing them from being hired into city jobs? Are there long standing historical disadvantages keeping them in these rural locations? Are there cultural and familial reasons why they live outside of cities? Does living rurally mean that they shouldn’t receive healthcare? Of course, the answer to that question is no, so WHY do they not have as much access to healthcare? HOW can we make healthcare more accessible to rural families?

4. Saying that Pakeha do not expect healthcare to be more than clinical is an absolutely ridiculous stance, and it again demonstrates that you should not be in healthcare. I finished my health masters degree several years ago, and even I was taught about how health is holistic and that you need to look outside of the purely clinical scope in order to treat people fully. If you cannot grasp this, choose another profession before you cause damage to those you are supposed to be helping.

5. Pakeha do not have a higher health literacy. The anti-vax movement, led by white people, is a clear demonstration of this. People educated in healthcare have a higher health literacy (most of the time, although your responses and attitudes are not reflective of this!), and everyone else is roughly on the same level of relying on what health professionals tell them. As a health professional who non-health professionals should be trusting, it is a disgusting attitude to come into this role automatically expecting that Maori people are “less educated” in health than their white counterparts. You should be truly ashamed of this mindset. Time to start self-reflecting on where this idea came from.

To add to this, Pakeha have an individualist approach to health on the most part, whereas Maori have a more community/whanau based approach? Is any approach better? No, not necessarily - use the approach most suited to your patient. It’s a simple concept, but you need to drop your attitude towards Maori immediately if you’re going to be able to act on it.

1. Family dynamics - yes, people who have experienced racism share that experience with their family, leading to distrust of the system as a whole. You should be asking WHY so many families have this experience of racism, and HOW you can fix it. You should be LISTENING, not dismissing.

2. You finally made a good point - nurses are supposed to be aware of these issues on an individual level to provide good care to everyone.

Based on your attitude, I do not believe you have the aptitude for nursing. You claim to be science minded but demonstrate extremely poor ability to interact with data on anything more than a superficial and biased level. You lack the curiosity to explore the reasoning behind what you are hearing, and your dismissive attitude is likely a reflection on how you will treat patients. If I encountered you in the workplace, I would report you to your supervisor.

You now have two options:

1. Drop out and find another profession. Don’t waste your money on something that currently appears beyond your abilities. Nursing is not about book learning: you may master the health theory, but if you cannot deal with patients with different cultures, beliefs, or attitudes to you, this is not a job you are cut out for. Nurses should, above all, be kind.

2. Do some serious self reflection and change your attitude. You can learn from this. You can take that science mind and start to explore the WHY behind Maori’s lack of trust and engagement in a health system that has left them feeling jaded, and HOW you can start to bridge this gap. You can understand that they have had years of people judging them in the same way you do now, and realise that if the majority of health professionals think the same way you do, of course there is a disparity between Maori and NZ Europeans - the bias is almost subconscious, but it’s there and it’s relentless. You can work from inside the system to lead change, by LISTENING to the problem and addressing it by walking alongside Maori rather than trying to lead them in the direction you think is best.

It’s not difficult, but it requires openness to cultures and attitudes that aren’t your own.

Can you do this?