Patu (TM)

PATUTM – PATUTM is a social enterprise business which provides an innovative approach to providing sustainable healthy lifestyle interventions within local communities. PATUTM is primarily based around providing group exercise and healthy lifestyle education that aims to empower its participants (PATUTM whānau) to make wise life-choices. PATUTM not only delivers in local gyms but also at schools, marae, prison and workplaces. In doing so, PATUTM fights the war against obesity and the occurrence of associated long-term illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma. 

In collaboration with EIT, PATUTM research has resulted in the development of a novel, holistic health and wellbeing assessment tool called the Meke Meter in order to measure PATUTM outcomes in a comprehensive, culturally appropriate manner and help identify areas of need within an individual’s lifestyle to assist with goal setting and PATUTM servicing whānau needs. In addition PATUTM regularly tracks participant anthropometric measures (weight, height, waist, hip, BMI, body fat percentage and blood pressure) which provides a wealth of quantitative data for assessing physical outcomes.

There are many potential projects, eg

  • The use of the Meke meter in aiding the management of long term illnesses
  • Benefits of exercise: Savings for the health service
  • Benefits of exercise: social impact analysis
  • Evaluating Patu in schools
  • Evaluating Patu in the provinces