• Northland coroner Tania Tetitaha has held an inquest into the deaths of six young people. Her findings are due in 2025.
• Hamuera Ellis-Erihe, 16, of Raumanga died in 2018. He loved dancing, rapping and singing.
• Summer Mills-Metcalf, 14, of Kaipara, died in 2018. She was described as a happy, smiling girl who enjoyed pulling pranks on family members.
• Ataria Heta, 16, of Moerewa died in 2020. She was a stand-out kapa haka performer with a kind nature.
• Maaia Reremoana Marshall, 13, of Kaitāia died in 2018 after being under the care of Oranga Tamariki.
• James Patira Murray, 12, of Ruakākā died in 2018. He loved rugby and was a Northland representative.
• Martin Loeffen-Romagnoli, 15, of Kaipara died in 2018. He was a talented hockey player described as friendly and loveable.

WARNING: This article discusses suicide and may be upsetting to some readers.

When tragedy strikes and a young person commits suicide it creates a ripple effect in their home – and sometimes those ripples can fan out to as many as 10 other people who may be also at risk.

But, one small team is intervening in Northland and doing everything it can to support those at risk with a kaupapa Māori model working alongside grieving whānau.

“We are guided by what the whānau need, not KPIs,” the suicide intervention team leader said at a recent coroner’s inquest into the suspected suicides of six rangatahi aged between 12 and 16. Five of them died in 2018 and one in 2020.

Over a period of four weeks, Northland Coroner Tania Tetitaha has heard evidence from whānau, service providers and experts on the deaths while seeking solutions to impediments to suicide prevention.

In week three of the hearing, Te Whatu Ora gave evidence about the services it offers to the north including the Tai Tokerau suicide postvention team lead Crystal Paikea.

The team of three provides face-to-face suicide intervention support to the Northland population of 179,000 and often works with whānau for years.

“Building trust in a community like Te Tai Tokerau is really important,” Paikea said.

Of the six youths, five are Māori – a factor that echoes the disparaging high rates of suicide among the indigenous. In 2018, Northland saw a significant spike in suicides followed by a drop off. However, in the last financial year Northland’s average was 33% above the national rate.

Northland's suicide rate for the past financial year is 33% higher than the national average. NZ Herald graphic

The team focus on whānau who have recently lost someone to suicide which can sometimes include up to 10 linked associates of the deceased who may be at risk.

The Tai Tokerau suicide postvention team receives daily reports and works alongside a collaborative stakeholder group “Fusion”, which connects with whānau.

The group, made up of Oranga Tamariki, the Ministry of Education, the police and Te Whatu Ora, meets daily to discuss recent deaths of under 25-year-olds and which service is best placed to reach into the whānau.

‘The tangi process forces us to be present’

“I’ve seen first-hand how good postvention is in prevention. So while some may consider postvention services to be too late, from my perspective, postvention services provide a vital opportunity to not only support whānau through their grieving and shock which can ultimately reduce suicide, but also is an opportunity to build resilience and pathways to healing for our whānau,” said Paikea.

“It can also mean that whānau are more likely to reach out for help.”

The Te Whatu Ora team supports whānau if requested, through the tangi process which Paikea said is embedded in the team’s philosophy.

“I can tell you attending tangi throughout my life has guided me greatly in being able to support whānau in their grief. When you see people aggrieved by suicide there is a particular type of shock and trauma involved with that.

“When we go to their homes we are manuhiri [visitors], we listen to them and what they need. The tangi process forces us to be present in their grieving, there’s a time to cry, time to be silent and time for humour. Our team have embedded that practice in our approach,” Paikea said.

Crystal Paikea leads a team of three delivering suicide postvention services to Northland. Photo / Te Whatu Ora

The team is considered non-clinical, however, Paikea believes the hauora Māori approach provides a specific type of service that mental health services cannot provide.

Often clients have had a negative experience with mental health services and are put off using them and Paikea’s team is filling a much-needed gap.

“Sometimes people think a kaupapa Māori approach is the wrong approach and we shouldn’t be doing certain things but we are very capable.

“Whānau reach out to us because they trust us and we’re expected to tell them to contact mental health services but it’s sometimes not the response they need.”

Paikea said it was difficult to put a figure on how many people they work with as suicide can occur at any time and affect several people, sometimes many months later.

“Initially sometimes people think they are doing okay but when we do planned follow-ups on people, they often fall apart a year later. With time, struggles arise they need support with and it doesn’t reveal itself immediately.”

‘We need to get whānau stronger’

The team can respond to a crisis immediately and sit with a person who may be having thoughts of suicide to help move them through the moment and remove potential items of concern from the environment. Processes Paikea said they have often been told they are not qualified to perform.

“Counsellors are not always easy to access, Māori don’t want to talk to someone who’s not Māori so there’s a gap to access really good quality support.

“I was once told I was not qualified to do that, but that person is still alive and I still support her,” Paikea said.

When Paikea was asked how she was coping with the workload she responded “it’s intense” but the team of three was close and supported each other to debrief daily.

“Sometimes people just need a compassionate response when needed, it’s my understanding suicidal thoughts are fleeting they come and go.

“We need to get whānau stronger in supporting their own because we’re not always going to be the service that supports the whānau,” Paikea told the coroner.

Coroner Tetitaha will release her findings on the inquest into Ataria Heta Summer Mills-Metcalf, Maaia Marshall, Martin Loeffen-Romagnoli, Hamuera Ellis-Erihe and James Murray in early 2025.

SUICIDE AND DEPRESSION

Where to get help:
• Lifeline: Call 0800 543 354 or text 4357 (HELP) (available 24/7)
• Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO) (available 24/7)
• Youth services: (06) 3555 906
• Youthline: Call 0800 376 633 or text 234
• What's Up: Call 0800 942 8787 (11am to 11pm) or webchat (11am to 10.30pm)
• Depression helpline: Call 0800 111 757 or text 4202 (available 24/7)
• Helpline: Need to talk? Call or text 1737
• Aoake te Rā (Bereaved by Suicide Service): Call 0800 000 053
If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.