Our programmes are strengths-based and we intentionally support tāngata whai ora to consider and explore their own recovery resources, or recovery capital.

In practice, this means thinking about and working on the social, personal and community resources that will support your wellbeing. Throughout your time with us, you will learn how these internal and external resources can also support sustained recovery.

We work alongside you to explore your existing strengths and build on these to develop a range of skills that will help you keep on track and move towards the life you want. 

“The programme has given me hope and has given me the tools that I desperately needed and continue to need”

Resident, Te Wairua services

The recovery capital approach provides us with a framework that acknowledges that recovery may start as an individual journey, but it is sustained in the community.

Learn more about Recovery Capital here.

At Odyssey, we recognise and celebrate the importance of cultural identity and connection to support you on your recovery journey.  We know that connections to whānau and whakapapa are key ingredients in successful recovery and we will work with you to explore and develop connections that will support you to move forward in your recovery.

“It made me feel like I was at home.  It helped me to find myself again.  It felt like one family learning together, helping each other.  The support, the unity and strength from the rest of the team was immense.  It made us a little bit closer.”

Participant in Odyssey kapa haka.

Here at Odyssey, we all belong to te iwi Mātūtū – the recovery community. We believe that diversity is our strength.

We work in partnership with our kaumatua, iwi advisors and mana whenua to ensure our services are culturally responsive and promote social equity. Working collaboratively with whānau, hapū, iwi, and other Māori providers, we ensure that our Māori whai ora have services that will enable them to meet their health and wellbeing goals.

We welcome and apply insights from mātauranga Māori in our services and actively support whai ora to reconnect with their culture. We draw on Māori holistic models and wellness approaches in all our work and across all levels of the organisation. 

In partnership with Ngāti Whātua o Ōrakei, we have developed and embedded tikanga Māori practices across our organization. Led by our cultural advisor, we all take responsibility for working with whai ora in a culturally responsive way. All staff participate in training to understand and apply the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in their work and all staff are encouraged to develop competency in te reo Māori and broaden their understanding of Te Ao Māori. 

Development of this kaupapa is informed by whai ora and wider organisational and sector feedback. We use dedicated cultural consumer feedback groups to continue to make improvements to meet the needs of Māori at Odyssey, both staff and whai ora.

We will support you to reflect on and explore your connections to Te Ao Māori and how this relationship can support you in your recovery. Our long established kapa haka, waiata and other tikanga practices such as whakatau and whakawhānaungatanga reinforce this connection in your everyday, not just in formal learning while you stay with us.

“It took a while to get into it at first, but in the end, it was great. It helped me feel like I had some mana. Helped me release emotions I had during the day.”

Māori resident

Our Māori Health Strategy and Māori Responsiveness Action Plan guide how we support tāngata whenua.

Three advisory groups provide regular input and feedback into Odyssey’s kaupapa Māori. These are: 

• Odyssey Taumata: kaumatua and kaukuia, mana whenua, and pan Māori representatives meet four times per year to provide guidance on matters of tikanga and kawa, as well as advice to senior management on appropriate protocols. 

• Te Runanga o Ōtihi: our external advisory council is made up of representatives from Māori services and partners. Te Runanga o Ōtihi meets quarterly to advise on Pae Ora developments regionally and nationally. 

• Ngā Toki: Membership includes whānau and all Māori whai ora at level three and above, Odyssey operations and clinical managers, Māori staff, graduates, contractors and cultural champions. Ngā Toki oversee the implementation and review of the Māori Health Strategy and Māori Responsiveness Action Plan. They advise on and monitor Māori-specific workforce support and development, including Te Tiriti o Waitangi workshops, embedding the Takarangi competency framework and providing cultural supervision. Ngā Toki meet quarterly.

We are committed to working in a culturally responsive way with Pasifika whai ora and incorporate the three key themes of fanau, language and tapu into our service delivery.

Pasifika core values of respect, leadership, service, love, spirituality, belonging, family, reciprocal relationships, compassion and responsibility align with the Odyssey pillars of love, concern, honesty, responsibility and trust. We use this alignment to guide the delivery of our Pasifika content throughout our services, and we support Pasifika whai ora to participate in cultural and other activities that are informed by traditional, holistic approaches to wellbeing.

Vaiola, our Pasifika staff group meet monthly to share experiences of their clinical practice in relation to their own culture and we value the richness of knowledge they bring and share with colleagues and Tagata Pasifika.

In 2019, we developed a Pasifika-focused AOD Intensive Treatment Programme (ITP) at Spring Hill Correctional Facility; the following Pasifika values informed the practice and programme content delivered on this site:

• Honouring the Va and negotiating to maintain harmony, reciprocity and mutual respect

• Unfolding the metaphorical mat

• Talanoa and Fa’atalatalanoa

We are currently formalising our Pasifika Health Strategy and Action Plan in consultation with Vaiola and external advisors.

We are committed to adapting our services to support all the populations we serve. We are supporting growing numbers of whai ora from Asian, migrant and refugee populations and are working to ensure our staff membership reflects the populations that we serve.

Our services aim to support all our whai ora to move forward in their lives. However, we acknowledge the unique challenges for whai ora who may not have the privilege of whānau networks in New Zealand or for whom English is a second language. 

We will work with you to make connections with relevant providers and other community groups that will support you in your long-term recovery. 

Odyssey’s Rainbow Tick accreditation guides our work with gender diverse and LGBTTQI lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, takatāpui, queer and intersex populations. Rainbow Tick is a Continuous Quality Initiative which includes ensuring policies and practice across the organisation are Rainbow inclusive. We have developed LGBTTQI/Rainbow competencies as part of a wider workforce development framework and these form part of core training and orientation for all new employees.

We embrace the Rainbow Tick principles of LGBTTQI-inclusive practice:

• Affirmation – affirm the dignity and value of LGBTTQI people’s sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status.

• Freedom from discrimination – ensure LGBTTQI people live their lives free from discrimination.

• Access and equity – provide LGBTTQI-inclusive services.

It’s not all hard work; we also take time to have fun together

Supportive relationships and community connection are a big part of who we are and what we do at Odyssey. 

We encourage you to work hard while you are with us and take advantage of the opportunities to learn and practice new skills and strategies that will support you to reach your life goals.  

We also want your time here to be restorative and we provide opportunities for you to participate in social and community activities that support wellbeing.

Our Living Well programme provides a framework that supports physical wellbeing for both staff and whai ora.  Residents and staff participate in Round the Bays every year, we host our own sporting events and organise outings on weekends. We also organise social activities throughout the year to mark occasions such as Mātāriki, Christmas, Eid, Chinese New Year and Māori Language Week.