Nursing Praxis in Aotearoa New Zealand 2021 Vol 37 Special Issue COVID-19 84 Steadfast is the rock: Primary health care Māori nurse leaders discuss tensions, resistance, and their contributions to prioritise communities and whānau during COVID-19 Abstract Historical experience from previous pandemics, together with knowledge of significant and perpetuating health inequities, led to predictions that Māori and Pacific peoples would experience greater morbidity and be hardest hit economically. Steadfast is the rock describes the mahi (work and actions) of three Māori nurse leaders through the first COVID-19 lockdown in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2020. Through kōrero (discussion and dialogue), this article draws on their experiences of working in a large mainstream primary health entity working across the Northland region of Aotearoa as they navigated their way within and across health sector providers and organisations to protect the health and wellbeing of whānau (families). They used their knowledge of mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge and tradition), to ensure Māori whānau were prioritised in the pandemic response in the region. They faced adversity and resistance in a fragmented system where competition and power interfered with collaborative practices. Throughout, they remained courageous and resilient, holding true to mātauranga Māori as nurses and Māori wāhine (women) to promote equity. Yet much of their work went unnoticed and unacknowledged. Māori nurse leaders hold a necessary role in providing an equity- focused response across mainstream and Māori health providers, through their abilities to maintain relationships, find mutually agreeable strategies, and work collaboratively across the health sector. Keywords / Ngā kupu matua: COVID-19; dialogue / whakawhiti kōrero; Indigenous / Iwi taketake; inequities / ngā korenga e ōrite; Māori; nursing leadership / kaihautū tapuhi; pandemic / mate urutā; primary health care / taurimatanga hauora tuatahi For Māori terms, please see the Nursing Praxis Te Reo Glossary Te Reo Māori translation He toka tū moana: Ka whakawhiti kōrero ngā kaihautū tapuhi Māori taurima hauora tuatahi mō te āmimai, te ātete, me ā rātou mahi arotahi ki ngā hapori me ngā whānau i te wā o COVID-19 Ngā ariā matua Nā ngā wheako o ngā urutā o tau kē, nā te mātauranga hoki mō ngā korenga e ōrite o ngā āhuatanga hauora nui, e haere tonu nei kāore he mutunga, kua ara ake ngā matapae tērā pea ka kaha ake te mate rawa me te pā nui hoki o ngā raru hauora ki ngā iwi Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. Ko tā tēnei puka Steadfast is the rock he whakaahua i ngā mahi me ngā kōkiri a ētahi kaihautū tapuhi Māori i Citation Davis, J., Wiapo, C., Rehana-Tait, H., Clark, T. C., & Adams, S. (2021). Steadfast is the rock: Primary health care Māori nurse leaders discuss tensions, resistance, and their contributions to prioritise communities and whānau during COVID-19. Nursing Praxis in Aotearoa New Zealand, 37(3), 84-93. https://doi.org.10.36951/27034542.2021.038 Josephine Davis 1,3 , MN, NP, Co-Leader National Nurse Practitioner & Enrolled Nurse Workforce Programme, School of Nursing; Ngāpuhi Coral Wiapo 2 , PGDip, RN, Regional Coordinator, National Nurse Practitioner & Enrolled Nurse Workforce Programme; Ngāti Whatua Hemaima Rehana-Tait 2 , PGDip, RN, Nurse Director; Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Kere, Ngāti Pihere and Ngāi Tahu Terryann C. Clark 1,2 , PhD, Associate Professor, School of Nursing; Ngāpuhi Sue Adams 1 , PhD, RN, Senior Lecturer/Co-Leader National Nurse Practitioner & Enrolled Nurse Workforce Programme, School of Nursing; Tauiwi - Western European Indigenous Ally Original Article / He Rangahau Motuhake 1 University of Auckland, Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand 2 Mahitahi Hauora PHE, Tai Tokerau/Northland, Aotearoa New Zealand 3 Corresponding Authors: josephine.davis@auckland.ac.nz; s.adams@auckland.ac.nz