UNIVERSITY OF MAGAZINEOtago ISSUE 2: JULY 2002 UNIVERSITY of HIGH COURT WIN: OTAGO is it enough to salvage the dental profession? SAPERE AUDE Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo UNIVERSITYmagazine OF OTAGO CONTENTS 10 photo:Cover Bill Nichol 5 Future of Dentistry Vice-Chancellor’s comment in New Zealand nears crisis point The recent High Court decision to 6 reimburse more than 460 University of Inbrief Otago dentistry students has highlighted News from Otago’s campuses disturbing trends within the profession. 19 Opinion 16 Professor Keith Ballard Medical doctor turns human geographer Dr Ghazali Musa today combines his love 24 of travel and endurance sports with his Staff Profile medical background to study health effects Emeritus Professor Jim Flynn of high altitude pursuits on travellers. 28 20 UniNews From Saudi to Otago 30 Dr Phil Seddon is back in New Zealand UniClippings overseeing Otago’s wildlife management diploma course. He talks about his previous 31 position in Saudi Arabia. Books 32 26 Mooters do Otago proud An expat’s Russia in 2002 Kiwi journalist Robin Munro describes life 33 in Moscow through an expatriate’s eyes: Alumni how it has been, how it is, and how he News and resources expects it to turn out. 3 SOMETIMES YOU WANT MORE graduation THAN MEMORIES birthdays The University of Otago Archway Shop stocks many different items of memorabilia – anniversaries something for every occasion. thank you christmas mothers’ day fathers’ day archwayshop.otago.ac.nz UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO magazine University of Otago Magazine Issue 2 VC’s COMMENT July 2002 ISSN - 1175-8147 We are the best. Managing Editor Gillian Thomas On Saturday 18 May, the Otago Daily Times’ front page Editor Brigid Feely headline was “Otago Researchers Triumph”. This story reported [email protected] our outstanding success in the latest Health Research Council funding round and led me to reflect on what we have Designer Peter Scott collectively achieved in recent years that entitles us to say we are Contributing Writers Simon Ancell the best University in New Zealand. Amber Fraser-Smith Briefly, here are some facts which support my claim: Jo Galer Lorraine Isaacs • We are New Zealand’s most intensive research University. Maari McCluskey Last year we attracted more external research funding than Lisa Macknight any other university in the country. Nicola Mutch • We have the best physical facilities in the country. Our new Jill Rutherford Penny St John Information Services Building and our student Ainslie Talbot accommodation are but two which are unsurpassed. Karin Warnaar • We produce the best graduates. An employer survey showed Nigel Zega that 43% rate Otago graduates as better than those from other Photography Sharron Bennett universities and 50% rate them as good as other graduates. Alan Dove • We have more of the very best graduates. In the past 10 Jenny Forbes years, Otago has taken more than one third of all Rhodes Bill Nichol Scholarships awarded in New Zealand - more than any other Yolanda van Heezik Martin von den Driesch university. • This year, our law students achieved the best result ever by a Advertising Ruth Mackenzie-White New Zealand team in an international Mooting Competition. Otago was placed third overall and was beaten Circulation Alumni Office [email protected] only by Harvard for the quality of the written arguments. • In business education, Otago has the only New Zealand MBA Contact Details to have been listed in the Financial Times World Top 100. University of Otago Magazine • Surveys of seventh form students repeatedly show that Marketing and Communications PO Box 56 Otago University and its student lifestyle is recognised as Dunedin being the best in the country. New Zealand Tel 64 3 479 8515 I could list many more achievements in support of this claim, Fax 64 3 479 5417 but there is one in particular which must be recognised - the Email [email protected] dedication and commitment of our staff. Given the pressures Web www.otago.ac.nz/otagomagazine faced in recent years, this has been truly outstanding. While we should all feel very proud of our achievements and have no hesitation in celebrating our successes, we should not Submissions be complacent. Not only must we ensure that we stay in our Contributed articles and letters should be addressed to: The Editor, University of Otago Magazine, at the above address or position as the best in New Zealand, but I suggest that during email [email protected]. the next three to five years we raise the bar and set ourselves the goal of advancing New Zealand's first University as a true world Copyright You are welcome to reproduce material from the magazine after gaining permission class university. from the editor. The University of Otago Magazine is published by the Marketing and Communications Division of the University. The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the University. Dr Graeme Fogelberg Vice-Chancellor University of Otago 5 INBRIEF UNDERSTANDING ENTREPRENEURSHIP New Zealand managers are well project that looks at barriers to MAY BOOST PROFILE regarded for having an entrepreneurial international entrepreneurship. spirit and developing innovative There are several inhibiting ideas. However, there appears to factors for New Zealand firms. be a gap between developing Size and lack of resources in innovative ideas and then using particular prevent business growth. those innovations to gain an For this study, Darroch is international competitive advantage, particularly interested in how says Otago’s Dr Jenny Darroch. entrepreneurs access capital in The University recently secured order to grow internationally and a substantial grant from the the experiences entrepreneurs Government’s Tertiary Education have had accessing venture capital. Strategic Change Fund to support Overseas research suggests that the development of entrepreneurship entrepreneurs should use venture at Otago. capital to grow their operations As the University’s Director of domestically and internationally. Entrepreneurship, Darroch is “If we had a slightly different using her newly created position attitude towards taking in overseas to develop a strong teaching and capital, we might find that we do research programme in better,” Darroch says. entrepreneurship for the “What can we do to try to University. Currently, Darroch is make the country grow and be researching the commercialisation more innovative, and encourage of innovations developed in entrepreneurship where there is Dr Jenny Darroch is exploring ways of changing business leaders’ conjunction with University an international competitive perceptions of expansion. researchers. advantage?” Together with Professor Vivienne Shaw from the Department of Marketing, she is beginning a MÄORI MEN DYING EARLIER THAN A recent Otago study shows The research, published in the NON-MÄORI premature death rates among New Zealand Medical Journal in Mäori males are still much higher March, also shows Mäori males than non-Mäori. are more than five times more Public health researcher likely to die from readily treatable Andrew Sporle (Christchurch illnesses than non-Mäori. Illnesses School of Medicine and Health such as asthma, chronic rheumatic Sciences) and his colleagues heart disease, appendicitis, Professor Peter Davis and bacterial infections, pneumonia Professor Neil Pearce (Massey and bronchitis figure prominently University Wellington), analysed as causes of premature mortality. data from the 1996 census along Similar research was done in with information from death 1975-77 and 1985-87, but it is certificates from 1996-97. unclear if mortality rates have “Our main finding is that changed because of differences in Mäori males continue to die the way data were collected and much earlier than non-Mäori; in classified. However, high rates of fact they are more than twice as Mäori premature death have likely to suffer premature death. persisted over this time. “The mortality rates are also Sporle says the latest research higher for Mäori males in the top also shows big variations in death occupational groups compared to rates between Mäori males in non-Mäori in the bottom groups.” different socio-economic groups. Sporle says this research indicates The research team says the Researcher Andrew Sporle has found Mäori men are continuing the cause is not just a matter of high rate of readily preventable to die earlier than their non-Mäori counterparts – regardless of social class.Adjustment for socio- deaths indicates more needs to socio-economic background. economic differences between be done to address Mäori health Mäori and non-Mäori produced needs. only a small change in rates. 6 CHRISTIANITY SCHOLARS ATTRACTED Otago researchers have Peter Lineham,Auckland’s Dr Alan BY STUDY AT OTAGO contributed to a Cambridge Davidson, and Dr Mark University-based examination of Hutchinson from the Sydney the global history of Christianity. College of Divinity. The project had a NZ$2 “It’s good to have people from million grant from the American Australia and New Zealand looking Pew Charities Fund to produce at the importance of Christianity in several studies and collections. shaping their society. Otago’s foundation Professor “These places are broadly of Theology and Dean of the considered to be secular and the School of Liberal Arts Professor value of religion is underplayed. Gerald Pillay recently hosted We’ll be looking at the historical Canadian and southern hemisphere significance of this underplaying scholars associated with the project. and some commonly