Nursing taonga Putiputi O’Brien RN QSO passed away in August aged 93. NGAIRA HARKER, HEMAIMA HUGHES and KERRI NUKU pay tribute to this special nurse.
Ngaira Harker: on behalf of the College of Nurses Aotearoa at the passing of their patron Putiputi O’Brien
Ngāti Awa has laid one of its most precious taonga to rest with the passing of Putiputi O’Brien. The daughter of Ngāti Awa chief Eruera Manuera and his wife, Pareake, Putiputi was born and raised in Te Teko in the eastern Bay of Plenty. Her tribal affiliations include Ngāti Awa, Te Arawa and Tūhoe.
Putiputi O’Brien was one of the first Māori nurses in New Zealand. She began her training at Waikato Hospital School of Nursing in 1941 and graduated in 1945 as a registered general and obstetric nurse.
She began her career as a public health nurse in Te Teko when the only way into the remote country areas was by horseback. Later she completed her maternity and Plunket training, and worked for more than 50 years in the eastern Bay of Plenty, central North Island and south Waikato areas. She is still remembered in Wairoa, my hometown, where she worked as a public health nurse and supported many whānau in Wairoa. It was here she met her husband Tom O’Brien.
On retiring from the Health Department, Putiputi worked in community health with Midland Health as a district health coordinator and the manager of the Ngāti Awa ki Rangitaiki health initiative, during which time she was behind many innovative health promotions.
As a Māori nurse, Nanny Puti was able to walk in both worlds and throughout the years has articulated eloquently the positive influence that nursing has made within Aotearoa. It is indeed a long career that Putiputi has had and she has shared freely her knowledge to all within nursing.
Patron and proverbs
Putiputi O’Brien became a founding trustee of the Tipu Ora Charitable Trust in 1991 and was also the patroness of Smokefree Nurses Aotearoa. She was a recipient of the Akenehi Hei award from Te Rūnangao Aotearoa NZNO for her contribution to Māori health. In 1987, she was awarded the Queen’s Service Order for her contribution to a wide range of community and welfare organisations at local and national levels. She had been the patron of Te Kaunihera o Nga Neehi Māori (National Council of Māori Nurses) since 1984.
On becoming the patron of the College of Nurses, Aotearoa (New Zealand), Nanny Puti gifted to the College a whakatauki (proverb):
“Kia taha, kia puawai, te maramatanga
The illumination and blossoming of enlightenment.”
This epitomised her positive attitude to life and her approach to care and was also the source for the name of the College newsletter Te Puawai (The Blossoming).
Nanny Puti has always been known and respected at a national level; however, it is in Te Teko where her loss has truly been felt. Nanny Puti was the ‘Queen of Te Teko’ and the community of Te Teko is only now coming to terms with the gap she has left in the community. She was an icon within this region and remained in her whare next to her marae surrounded by her whānau within Te Teko where she continued to support her community.
Trailblazer fostering next generation
We have been fortunate to have Nanny Puti as our ‘covergirl’, together with her beautiful daughter Pare, in promoting and supporting Te Ōhanga Matora Paetahi – Bachelor of Health Science Māori Nursing. They have been inspirational in their support of establishing a Māori nursing school within Whakatane. At the inaugural opening of the programme we had Nanny Puti as our guest of honour and to everyone’s delight, including Putiputi, we relived her experiences through some old footage riding on her horse and reliving some of her amazing experiences and challenges within her career. We were all delighted to watch her laughing as she realised that she was the focus of the clips.
She was a trailblazer and the tauira (students) who were fortunate enough to relive this with Nanny Puti will have this memory of her in this magic moment. We were so fortunate to be able to fulfill one of her dreams, which was to see Te Ōhanga Mataora Paetahi delivered from within the culturally strong environment of Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi.
Nanny Puti dedicated her life to what she later described as ‘absolutely, positively nursing’. In Nanny Puti’s words:
“Nursing by its very essence is about positive impact, we just need to tap its full potential in every setting and every context … Let’s together reach out and grasp the fullness of what we have to offer and turn all our energy to achieving a ‘positive impact’ rather than wasting energy on what leads to negativity. Let us collectively agree we are absolutely, positively nursing.”
The College of Nurses has been truly privileged to have had Putiputi O’Brien as our patron and we thank her whānau for sharing her with us all.
“Hāere, hāere, hāere atu rā koe e kui ka moe nei o whatu, ka mahue nei te manehurangi
O te putiputi o te rātā whakaruruhau ki ritoroti a to pā harakeke ka heke nei tōna momo.”
Kerri Nuku: kaiwhakahaere of Rūnanga o Aotearoa NZNO
Te Rūnangao Aotearoa pay tribute to Putiputi O’Brien and honour her outstanding Māori leadership. Putiputi worked tirelessly to improve the health and wellbeing of our people.
As a recipient of our most prestigious award, Putiputi was acknowledged and admired by her peers for maintaining the integrity and values of manaakitanga, kaitiakitanga and wairuatanga as she went about fulfilling her vision of building a strong and resilient Māori workforce, in what were challenging times.
There is a Māori proverb that reads:
“A totara is a huge tree that grows for hundreds of years. For one of them to fall is a great tragedy.”
Although we have lost a significant wahine toa we must take comfort from her vision that has inspired many of the young and old, Māori and non-Māori, who follow in her footsteps and her dream will continue and remain in our hearts.
Hemaima Hughes: on behalf of Te Kaunihera o Ngā Neehi Māori o Aotearoa (National Council of Māori Nurses), of which Putiputi O’Brien was also patron.
“E te whānau pani, tēnā koutou katoa.
Kua hinga koe ataahua Whaea Putiputi
E te pohutukawa nui,
Takoto mai i runga i te rangimarie o te Karaiti,
Ko koe te kawa whakaruruhau o tātou ākonga me ngā neehi Māori o Aotearoa.
E te pou tokomanawa e kore rawa koe e warewaretia
Takoto i runga i te aroha
Kei te maumahara tonu tō kōrero i o tātou ākonga me ngā neehi Māori o Aotearoa mo te hauora o ngā iwi Māori me ngā tangata katoa.
‘Tomo mai ki te akoranga hauora
whakahokia ki te ao whanui’
Haere atu rā koe i runga tō waka tūpuna o Mataatua.
No reira, e te rangatira whaea, haere, haere, haere atu rā.
Moe mai i tō moengaroa.”
To the bereaved family, greetings.
You have fallen beautiful Aunty Putiputi
O giant pohutukawa, lie in the peace of Christ
You are the shelter of our Māori nursing students and nurses of New Zealand
Our great pillar, you will never be forgotten
Lie peaceful in our love
Your advice to all Māori students and Māori nurses to ‘enter to learn and go forth to serve’ (for the health of the people) will always be remembered.
Go to your waka Mataatua to the gathering place of your ancestors
Therefore Aunty our esteemed leader, farewell, farewell, rest in peace.
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