Sailau Suaalii-Sauni - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Sailau Suaalii-Sauni

Social Science, Suâesuâe Manogi: In Search of Fragrance., Jun 1, 2018

Asia-Pacific Psychiatry, 2013

This is a collection of writing by 10 indigenous Pacific women. Essay topics include images of Ma... more This is a collection of writing by 10 indigenous Pacific women. Essay topics include images of Maori women on New Zealand postcards, the interests and cultural identity of Maori women, education in Western Samoa, young Samoan women and sexuality, gender and work in Fiji, deconstructing the 'exotic' female beauty, representation in films, and poetry.

Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health, 2010

This article reflects on the challenges of strengthening health research capacity from within Sam... more This article reflects on the challenges of strengthening health research capacity from within Samoa. It examines the status of health research and related curricula in Samoa and discusses the outcomes of a new postgraduate applied social and health research methods course taught in Samoa for the first time from 5 January to 12 February 2010 by the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, University of Otago in collaboration with the Centre for Samoan Studies, National University of Samoa. The article argues that collaborative health research courses such as this methods paper can fill a curriculum gap in New Zealand and Samoa and contribute directly toward strengthening Samoa health research capacity in ways that benefit both Samoa and New Zealand. This initiative can be a flagship for strategies operating from within Samoa that can build real win-win type partnerships. These can be ably led by Samoans for the ultimate development of an affordable and sustainable quality health...

Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, 2010

Addiction, 2007

To describe the development and evaluation of the Substances and Choices Scale (SACS), an adolesc... more To describe the development and evaluation of the Substances and Choices Scale (SACS), an adolescent alcohol and other drug (AOD) self-report instrument designed in a similar format to the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). A literature review, extensive consultation and discriminant analysis on a pilot sample (n = 61) of adolescents informed the development of the SACS. The psychometric properties of the SACS were then tested in a larger community and clinical sample. Three youth out-patient AOD treatment services and three secondary schools in Auckland, New Zealand. 13-18-year-old males and females attending the services (n = 120) or schools (n = 531). The SACS was administered with the CRAFFT, the Problem Oriented Screening Instrument for Teenagers (POSIT) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Reliability of the SACS was sound, with coefficient alpha 0.91 and 3-week test-retest correlation 0.88. Congruent validity coefficients of the SACS versus the CRAFFT and the POSIT were 0.79 and 0.91, respectively. A ROC curve demonstrated the SACS as having a predictive value of 92%. Repeat SACS scores in a treatment sample indicated that the SACS had utility in measuring change. Feedback from participants indicated that the SACS was highly acceptable. The SACS is a simple AOD instrument that is reliable, valid and acceptable to young people. It has utility in screening and measuring outcome and should enhance the identification and treatment of AOD difficulties in adolescents across a range of health settings.

A qualitative investigation communities of influence their decisions whether to drink alcohol, dr... more A qualitative investigation communities of influence their decisions whether to drink alcohol, drink excessively or not at all. For each young Suaalii-Sauni et al. Harm Reduction Journal 2012, 9:36

The New Zealand medical journal, Jan 3, 2005

To describe the alcohol consumption patterns and related harms of some Pacific peoples (Samoan, C... more To describe the alcohol consumption patterns and related harms of some Pacific peoples (Samoan, Cook Islands Maori, Tongan, Niuean, Fijian, and Tokelauan) living in Aotearoa (New Zealand), and to draw comparisons with measures from the general New Zealand population. The Pacific Drugs and Alcohol Consumption Survey (PDACS) was carried out with 1103 randomly selected Pacific peoples aged between 13 and 65 years old who were resident in households throughout New Zealand. The survey used computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) and computer assisted cell-phone interviewing (CACI). The interviews were carried out in 2002/03. We descriptively compare findings from the PDACS with those from the 2000 National Alcohol Survey (NAS). Fifty-seven percent of Pacific peoples were drinkers (males 61%, females 51%), compared with 85% of the general New Zealand population (males 88%, females 83%). The average annual consumption of absolute alcohol was 21 litres for Pacific drinkers (males 28...

The Contemporary Pacific, 2012

Sexually Transmitted Infections, 2015

This article provides an overview of a current three-year (2017–2020) international youth justice... more This article provides an overview of a current three-year (2017–2020) international youth justice research project. The research aims to reveal how Māori and Samoan young people and their families interact with and make sense of youth justice systems across three different settler-colonial countries: New Zealand, Australia and the United States. The research into these culturally distinct communities is building a community-level analysis of youth justice for comparison within and across these countries. The article outlines the study objectives and the theoretical and methodological frameworks used in the research; it also explains why an Indigenous criminology approach is being considered for policy and programmatic solutions that address the youth justice concerns and needs of these communities.

This chapter seeks to discuss the claim that Samoa has a dual legal system. It explores how an un... more This chapter seeks to discuss the claim that Samoa has a dual legal system. It explores how an understanding of the interplay between (1) the faamatai (Samoa’s chiefly system), (2) Samoa’s parliamentary system, (3) the faasamoa (Samoa’s customary system), and (4) the faakerisiano (Samoa’s Christian system) can help us better understand this claim. It argues the importance of being able to read cultural nuance into case law, political acts and everyday practices of custom. Samoa’s recent H.R.P.P landslide election victory means that Samoa effectively has a one-party state where law-making will be dominated by H.R.P.P persuasions over the next 5 years. Without the checks and balances offered by an opposition party, Samoa’s voting public must find other ways to hold parliament and the government accountable to its prized rule of law—a rule of law assumed to be capable of giving due regard to the nuances of custom and culture i.e. to Samoa’s faasamoa, aganuu, agaifanua, and tu ma aga, a...

AlterNative, 2011

Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Kia orana, Fakalofa lahi atu, Nisa bula vinaka, Taloha ni... Warm gree... more Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Kia orana, Fakalofa lahi atu, Nisa bula vinaka, Taloha ni... Warm greetings to you all. When I agreed to accept the invitation to do this keynote address, I did so for two main reasons. First, because Linitā had asked me to do it and I always find it difficult to say no to Linitā. 1 As many of you know, champions like Linitā must be supported where possible. My second reason was because I am always keen to share with people of like minds, to engage in an open and meaningful conversation about what it is that we are doing in universities as Pasifika educators and scholars, and to focus in on what Pasifika education might be exactly and where it could go. In attempting to prepare for this talanoa session, if I may call it that, I went back to the invitation letter and conference correspondence sent to me by Linitā and the organising committee to make sure I address what is expected of me. 2 In reading these I realised that there is an emphasis on teaching. I...

Pacific health dialog, 2009

Cultural competency is about the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully and e... more Cultural competency is about the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully and effectively to the cultural needs of peoples of all cultures. Its general attributes include knowledge, attitudes, skills and professional judgment. In Pacific mental health, 'the cultural' is generally understood to be ethnic culture. Accordingly, Pacific cultural competencies assume ethnic specific markers. In mental health Pacific cultural competencies has seen a blending of cultural and clinical beliefs and practices. This paper provides an overview of five key theme areas arising from Auckland-based ethnic-specific Pacific workshop data: language, family, tapu relationships, skills and organisation policy. Workshop participants comprised of Pacific mental health providers, Pacific consumers, family members of Pacific consumers and members of the Pacific community members. This paper purports that identifying the perceptions of different Pacific groups on ethnic-specific eleme...

Pacific health dialog, 2003

A study into the complex issue of child consent surrounding Pacific children's participation ... more A study into the complex issue of child consent surrounding Pacific children's participation in research, with a focus on collective nature of these children's rights and knowledge is illustrated. The Children Young Persons and their Families Act (1989) allows collective rights and responsibilities that are important to Maori and Pacific peoples to be operationalised through a group conferencing, where families play an integral part in developing children's responsibilities within a family accountability model.

There is increasing concern about the inequalities, overall health outcomes, and mental health of... more There is increasing concern about the inequalities, overall health outcomes, and mental health of Pacific peoples residing in New Zealand. The New Zealand Mental Health Survey (Te Rau Hinengaro), conducted in 2003/2004, identfied Pacific peoples as having a higher 12-month prevalence of mental disorders than the general population. The burden of mental health amongst Paqfic peoples was identified as high and associated with other socioeconomic correlates. Pacflcpeoples were also more likely not to access professional mental health assistance. The aim of this study was to provide indepth qualitative data that explored Pacflc perceptions and experience of the theory practice, and utilisation of Pacific mental health services in New Zealand This paper documents: (i) the different models of care practiced in the Pacific mental health sector and (ii) the specific components that: (a) make these models uniquely Pacific, and (b) that consumers and families identWed as integral to the recov...

... Dr Malepeai Ieti Lima and family, Lanuola Asiasiga, Kirk Mariner, Lagona Shepherd and family,... more ... Dr Malepeai Ieti Lima and family, Lanuola Asiasiga, Kirk Mariner, Lagona Shepherd and family, Asenati Liki, Luafata simanu-Klutz, Moana solomona, vili ... To my sisters, Loma and Natu and their husbands, Charlie Taimalie and Pat Pea Lafaele thank you for all the babysitting ...