Chair Of Gerontology

Faculty of Medical Health and Sciences

University of Auckland

The Masonic Chair Of Geriatric Medicine is a Chair of Medicine within the University of Auckland’s Department of Geriatric Medicine.

It was established to commemorate the Centenary of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand in 1990.

The Freemasons Charity contributed to a Capital Fund of approximately $2 million along with other bequests and donations from individual Lodge members.

Today the Geriatric Capital Fund stands at $2.6 million. Funds have been invested and it is the interest earned from the Capital Fund that finances research in the Geriatric Unit.

 The Geriatric Unit was initially sited at the North Shore Hospital in Auckland. This medical unit was the first full chair established and funded by a community group in New Zealand.

While there are several privately funded Chairs in the Medical School, the Chair in Geriatrics is the only privately funded Chair that has a full back up of technical and secretarial services.

The Geriatric Unit was officially opened by the then Minister of Health, Dr Michael Bassett, on 12 December 1986. The Unit has since been relocated to the Middlemore Hospital Complex in South Auckland.

From humble beginnings in 1986, the University Geriatric Unit has established a reputation for academic leadership in the field of geriatric medicine and gerontology (the science of ageing).

In 2002 the name of the “Masonic Chair of Geriatric Medicine” was changed to the “Freemasons Chair of Gerontology” to reflect changes in aged care.

Today, the concept of developing a Centre to look at aging as a whole is continuing and from a practical teaching perspective, a close liaison is required with patients.

The work of Professor Martin Connolly and his predecessors has been of world class, now in today’s world the study of gerontology is growing in status and attracting more attention with its endeavour to keep our older people more mobile, more useful to society and more valuable citizens.

 Gerontology is the scientific study of ageing and the problems associated with elderly people 

The Freemasons Charity has provided approximately $2.6 million in funding for the Chair of Gerontology.

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CHAIR OF PAEDIATRICS – UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO

In 1982 the report of the 1977 Committee on child health was published. Although it stated that a New Zealand child did have a better chance of survivalthan ever before, it suggested that the health care record for children could not rest on its past achievements. 

Mindful of this, a meeting was set up between the Wellington Clinical School Paediatrics Department (part of Otago School of Medicine) and a contracted staff member of Grand Lodge New Zealand Freemasons. At this inaugural meeting they were able to discuss and highlight the critical factors in child health care in New Zealand today.

It was believed by those attending the meeting that one of the basic problems facing child health in New Zealand today was the lack of research funds available to pay a research registrar or registrars based at Wellington Children’s Hospital.

Such a grant would ensure proper long term co ordination of research activities, the opportunity to investigate child health issues, and would also help retain highly qualified medical staff in New Zealand who would otherwise be forced to undertake research overseas.

At that meeting the critical factors facing child health in New Zealand were highlighted as:

That there was a high incidence of respiratory diseases in New Zealand children especially amongst the Maori.

Further research was required into the problems of the newborn.

Research into morbidity. The need for up to date data on child cancers, accidents involving children and childhood anaemia.

Grand Lodge of New Zealand Freemasons undertook this challenge in 1988 by way of a Fellowship-

The NZ Freemasons Postgraduate Fellowship in Paediatrics and Child Health,

Discussions are held each year between The Freemasons Charity and the Otago University School of Medicine to award a new Fellowship.

Since 1988 including the $500,000 granted to set up the original fund the commitment of The Freemasons Charity in its support of the Chair of Paediatrics exceeds $1.5 million.

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