Ranjna Patel, who has worked for more than 40 years in the health sector, knows the reality of domestic violence in New Zealand communities.
A lifetime of service to others. Ranjna’s career began when she and her husband opened an operation in South Auckland in 1976. She is now director of Tamaki Health, the largest independent primary health care group in New Zealand, and has received the Order of New Zealand merit. .
Ranjna also sits on several NGO advisory boards, including the South Asian Advisory Council of Manukau County Police. This is where the police approached her to help her solve a problem her community was facing.
“In 2012 and 2013, four out of 14 Indian women (victims of spousal abuse) died,” she said.
This fact prompted Ranjna to create Gandhi Nivas in 2014, a home in Otahuhu where police can designate perpetrators of domestic violence as a place of residence while they receive counseling.
Initially set up primarily to help members of the Indian community, Gandhi Nivas quickly evolved to provide support to all ethnicities.
They also opened two other houses in Auckland, one in Te Atatu and another in Papakura.
Since their opening, 1,600 families have been helped by the service.
Ranjna explains that Gandhi Nivas is a good place to calm down and get help: “When the police are called to a place where her family is hurt, she shows up and if the woman makes it clear that she wants this man go away, remove the women and children, the man will be kidnapped and asked if he has anywhere to go.
“If he says no, they will offer the service of Gandhi Nivas, which is a bed for the night, and a counseling service.
“Only 11% of men are ready for change, so this percentage is low. It is a small drop in the ocean, but we hope that prevention will work much better than the reaction.
“The next day, another team will come to the house to monitor women and children and offer advice as well.”
Putting an end to the cycle Keeping up with the root of violence is a fundamental aspect of Gandhi Nivas.
“We can take the women and the family out of the house,” says Ranjna, “but the man will only go and see another woman. And so, if we do not look for the root cause and do not help change behavior, we are just repeating the cycle.
“Children in particular are what I really want to see change because they will do what they see. This cycle must be broken. That it is not acceptable for anyone to hit someone.
Counseling services are only as good as advisers In order to make real changes, Ranjna recognized the need for a consultancy service and turned to Sahaayta, whose work and dedication are praised by Ranjna.
“Our point of difference is the free, 24-hour, 7-day, 7-in-7 counseling service,” says Ranjna, noting that not only are most consulting services too expensive for users, but they are not not available when they were needed most.
“Most of the incidents that police face on Thursday and Friday evenings and weekends, and because I worked in the health sector, I knew that counseling in 24 hours when it is raw is more powerful.
And it works Although a more comprehensive triennial qualitative study by Massey University is coming out later this year, the results are already making a statement.
In particular, 93% of clients were not involved in another incident of family injury.
Another example shared by Ranjna is the fact that more than 150 men have voluntarily re-entered the home.
“That means they recognized their trigger points and pulled out of the situation. For me, it’s an excellent behavior of change.
“And men know they can come back at any time without the police. They built this relationship with the counselors.
“A cry for help can be:” Can I take you for a cup of coffee? “,” Can I take you to a movie? “And these advisers are so passionate that they actually do it.”
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