Three new Mental health and addiction quality improvement programme members

The mental health and addiction quality improvement programme recently welcomed three new team members. 

Ethan Tauevihi-Kahika and Cam Young bring a renewed Pacific focus to the programme’s leadership group, while Arana Pearson is our new consumer engagement advisor. 

R to L: Arana Pearson, Ethan Tauevihi-Kahika and Cam Young

With whakapapa to Niue, Tonga and Denmark, Ethan is currently a Kaiārahi – Family Court Navigator for the Ministry of Justice. Passionate about supporting rangatahi, normalising speaking up, and reaching out and asking for help, Ethan has links to Youthline that began when he was a client aged 15 and now an advisory committee member and group facilitator. 

Raised in Te-Matau-a-Māui, with whakapapa to the Cook Islands and Sāmoa, Cam (he/they) is a Pacific navigator for Te Whare Tāwharau Sexual Violence Support and Prevention Centre. A University of Otago postgraduate student, Cam’s research takes a bio-psychosocial approach to reproductive health, from investigating the neuroendocrine control of gestational diabetes to understanding Pacific youths’ knowledge of sexuality and reproduction.

Working at both regional and district levels, for many years Arana has advocated for those with lived experience of mental ill health. With a background in adult education and a former advisor to the national Like Minds, Like Mine project to counter stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness, Arana’s recent focus has been on developing a lived experience and whānau-led strategy for Bay of Plenty people experiencing mental ill health.