New surgery studentship supports wāhine
Makayla Kahi (Ngāti Kauwhata), was awarded the inaugural Vision Research Foundation Summer Studentship, mentored by Professor Helen Danesh-Meyer.
Kahi has a certificate in health science and is a second-year medical student at the University of Auckland. She is a Pūhoro STEMM Academy scholarship recipient (science, technology, engineering, mathematics and mātauranga – Māori knowledge) and now works as a tutor lead at the academy. Kahi has also been involved with research projects at the Liggins Institute and with the TBI Health Group NZ.
“I’m excited to begin work on this summer studentship, shadowing Professor Danesh-Meyer is awesome! Hopefully the research will make a real difference in understanding the barriers for wāhine Māori in medicine, navigating their way into surgery.”
Māori doctors comprise less than 3% of surgeons, including ophthalmologists, in New Zealand. The percentage of female Māori surgeons is lower still, said Prof Danesh-Meyer, adding there’s also a general under-representation of women in surgery, comprising just 18% of surgeons in Aotearoa. “By addressing the inequity in the healthcare profession, Vision Research Foundation hopes to contribute to action on these major health inequities.”
The Vision Research Foundation summer studentship is 10 weeks long and includes clinical and research components. As part of the former, Kahi will participate in clinics and observe eye surgeries at Eye Institute. The research element will include a literature review and the design of a semi-structured interview for Māori medical students, exploring barriers to entry into surgical careers, including ophthalmological surgical programmes.
The research findings will contribute to a mentorship programme to support young wāhine Māori students on their journey in undertaking surgical careers. A hui will be planned for students, with a focus on wāhine Māori at secondary and medical school level.
Vision Research Foundation is a charitable trust established in 2022 and led by scientific director Prof Danesh-Meyer and managed by optometrist Ella Ewens.
The charity aims to build a network of researchers collaborating across multiple disciplines including biomedical science, ophthalmology and vision science, bioengineering and computational big-data research. Vision Research Foundation already has several research projects in progress across these disciplines under four research arms: community engagement (of which the wāhine Māori in surgery project is a part) oculomics, glaucoma, and neurological disease.
