Abstract: Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand and suffer disproportionately high rates of asthma, coronary heart disease, diabetes mellitus, lung cancer, renal disease, respiratory diseases, sudden infant death syndrome, and suicide. The current New Zealand Government has identified the addressing of Maori health issues as primary on their agenda.

Objective: This presentation will report on the results of a survey designed to address the basic question: How useful is the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for addressing Maori health issues?

Method: The survey consists of a set of forced choice and open-ended questions designed to assess the basic study question. A wide range of representatives of the Maori community will be opportunistically sampled including Maori consumers, clinicians, health researchers, policy makers, and senior government officials. Data will be presented as simple frequencies and percentages.

Results and Conclusions: The survey is due for completion in September 2000. Preliminary findings indicate the CDSR has general utility for health policy makers. However, results from specialized Maori health researchers are mixed and less favorable.