Cultural formulation and Indigenous mental health — structured clinical viva

This station tests risk plus cultural formulation, not culture instead of risk. Immediate tasks: medical clearance confirmed, current suicidal ideation/intent/plan/means, protective factors, substances, capacity for safety planning, and least restrictive disposition.[2]

Cultural formulation. Use OCF/CFI domains: identity (including Māori identity as she defines it — not assumed), conceptualisation of distress (including wairua), stressors and resilience (whānau, community), and relationship factors (mistrust of mainstream services). Kleinman-style questions map meaning of the overdose and hoped-for help.[1][6]

Te Whare Tapa Whā. Name four walls — tinana, hinengaro, whānau, wairua — as a holistic frame for assessment and aftercare, while stressing diversity among Māori and avoiding essentialism.[3]

Evidence-informed cultural care. Te Ira Tangata is an example RCT of culturally informed treatment versus treatment as usual after self-harm in Māori — use it as an evidence anchor for culturally informed pathways, not as a claim that one protocol fits all.[2]

Cultural safety. Distinguish from self-certified competence: safety is recipient-defined and requires power-sharing and anti-racism (Papps and Ramsden; Curtis refinements).[4][5]

Practical plan. Whānau involvement with consent; Māori health worker liaison; safety plan that includes cultural supports; follow-up with dual pathways if needed; document without inventing legal sections.[2][5]