Launched in 2016, the campaign has evolved to include impact-centred storytelling through videos designed to align with Māori and Pacific worldviews. The campaign now delivers content across nine priority regions through Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, supported by community activities from the Stroke Foundation.

The Challenge/Wero

Health NZ needed a fresh approach to evaluate their FAST campaign, particularly focusing on how the message resonates with Māori and Pacific communities. While previous evaluations showed increased awareness, disparities persisted. The 2020/21 interim evaluation highlighted effectiveness among Pacific peoples but showed no increase in understanding of the FAST mnemonic, with Māori having lower awareness of 'Take action' than other ethnic groups.Our task went beyond simple data collection – we needed to understand how whānau gather, process and act on health information, while ensuring our evaluation methods were mana-enhancing and culturally responsive.

Our Approach

Campaign Impact

Notably, younger people (under 35) were two times more likely to find the materials informative than those 35 or over, suggesting effective engagement with a key demographic.

Looking Forward

The findings provide clear direction for future campaign development. We found that whānau often play a central role in processing information, with collective discussions helping individuals feel supported and informed.  As one participant noted: "When we talk about hauora as a whānau, we bring everyone together. That's how we make decisions that stick."We're excited to see these insights applied in practice and look forward to continuing our work with Te Whatu Ora and other health providers to support better health outcomes across Aotearoa.