Healthy connections for women in medicine - Juliet Rumball-Smith SUMMER 2018
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SUMMER 2018
Juliet Rumball-Smith
Healthy
connections
for women
in medicine
Greater good Business / Hutt Hospital sustainability initiatives
Money Investments / Is the next crash coming?
Good living Travel / Swimming with whales in Tonga
In this issue on mas /
summer 2018
The information contained in OnMAS is of a general nature
04
and should not be used or relied upon as a substitute
for detailed advice or as a basis for formulating business
On the cover money
decisions. The opinions of contributors are their own and
not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. 16 Investments / Is the next crash
coming?
©2018. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may 345 companies globally 24 Insurance / Airbnb host insurance
be reproduced in whole or part without the prior permission From MAS are excluded from our RI obligations
of the publisher. equities mandate. Wāhine Connect
started with
And just like that, 2018 is In October, MAS announced a Facebook greater good
PUBLISHER MAILING ADDRESS winding down and we’re a Member benefit for victims post and has
MAS OnMAS almost looking ahead to the of cyber-bullying. Read blossomed into a 04 Cover story / Healthy connections
Level 3, PWC Centre PO Box 13042 new year. But before we do, more on page 12. This is growing network 08 Holiday living / Happy, safe,
10 Waterloo Quay Johnsonville here at MAS we’re looking one way we’re showing our of 200 mentors stress-free holidays
Wellington 6011 Wellington 6440 back on one of our busiest commitment to the wellbeing helping other 12 Cyber / Protecting against
years in a long time. of our Members. Another women in the online bullies
PHONE HEAD OFFICE is our support of Wāhine health sectors 14 Business / Hutt Hospital: setting
0800 800 627 +64 4 478 8863 At our AGM in August, Connect – an initiative that Cover model is founder sights on sustainability
we began a significant provides mentors to women Juliet Rumball-Smith
WEBSITE EMAIL change to MAS when our working in the health industry.
mas.co.nz onmas@mas.co.nz Members voted to establish Learn more on page 4.
a charitable trust with the
EDITOR DESIGN purpose of health research, We’ve also spoken
Sophie Speer eightyone.co.nz promotion and education in to innovative young
New Zealand. We’ve applied entrepreneurs who are
to Charities Services for modernising the traditional
THE HUB registration as a charity, acupuncture technique of
For more stories, videos and to share your views, and if successful, we will be a bed of nails. We swim with
visit the MAS Hub at hub.mas.co.nz. The hub is the exempt from income tax, humpback whales in Tonga
go-to site for features from OnMAS issues, as well which will free up significant and celebrate the classic Kiwi
as helpful information and useful tips on all the things sums for distribution to summer institution of the
that matter to us –
and to you. You can easily share initiatives that further barbecue – with a southern
stories from the hub with friends and family, see videos health research, promotion American twist.
that delve deeper and have your say on issues affecting and education. We’ll keep
you and your community. you posted as we progress As always, we're keen for your
this important and exciting feedback and story ideas
project in 2019. for future issues of OnMAS.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION Please get in touch at professional life
Every effort has been made to guarantee the pages In 2018, we also made great onmas@mas.co.nz
of OnMAS are sustainably sourced and produced strides as a responsible 02 News briefs
using paper that meets the environmental standards investor. MAS now has Finally, we wish all our 10 Profile / Diversity in the workplace – good living
shown below. It is then packaged in an eco-friendly more than $1.6bn invested Members safe, relaxing and how one female engineer is making
degradable wrap for protection in transit. in Responsible Investing happy holidays. We’re looking change 21 Business / Nailing it: Kiwis build
(RI). We no longer invest in forward to some R&R and 13 MAS Elective Scholarships / business on bed of nails
the exploration, extraction, getting back into it for 2019. A brighter future 25 Travel / Swimming with whales
refining or processing of 18 Health / Weighing in: the emotional in Tonga
fossil fuels or utilities that Mike Davy dimension of childhood obesity 30 Motoring / Rising cost of car repairs
primarily burn fossil fuels. MAS, General Manager 28 Student news / End-of-year updates 32 Food & drink / Cheers to summer
We also avoid tobacco and Marketing and Products from association presidents 36 Entertainment / Book reviews
armaments, and a total of 29 MAS in the wild / MAS Movie Night and your summer festival guide
ISBN 2230-5823
on mas the magazine for mas members 1
P professional life /
news briefs
Exercise for Microwave
News briefs your brain
Just two hours of exercise a week is
relief
Verrucas and warts on the feet have
enough to improve mental health, traditionally been difficult and stubborn
according to research from the United to resolve, but there is now hope thanks
In brief “We’re surrounded by native bush States. The study in The Lancet Psychiatry to the development of microwave
and have lovely trees, and my goal used data from more than 1.2 million technology. Swift Microwave Therapy
was to create a garden that holds Americans and found that, in the period can treat these ailments in seconds using
together 12 months of the year.” from 2001 to 2015, those who exercised non-ionising radiation, which has the
for about 45 minutes three to five times ability to agitate water molecules within
With kilometres of buxus hedging a week had better mental health than skin without causing damage to the DNA
and topiary, Gillies says it looks best those completing marathon sessions or surrounding tissue. MAS Members
in winter where you see the structure. more regularly. Exercise was considered Jonathan and Wendy Hagon from Shore
He’s most proud of the water garden, to be everything from housework and Footed Podiatry in Auckland are the first
01
which was initially a disaster, with the walking to running, gym sessions and to introduce this new technology into
02
Pete Gillies’
boxing erected for the concrete pour team sports, and those who exercised New Zealand and say, given the positive
not able to withstand the pressure and experienced about 1.5 fewer self- results seen overseas, they expect
garden
leaving holes in the pond’s walls. reported bad mental health days than demand to grow.
their more sedentary peers. Team sports,
“A friend put me onto an Irish builder cycling and aerobic and gym activities
Two decades of hard work has resulted who said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll fix it’, and were shown to make the biggest impact
in Peter Gillies’ garden in Upper Hutt completing that was quite a feat. It on participants’ mental health.
being listed as a Garden of National looks fantastic with the topiary and
Significance, putting it with the magnolias,” he says.
Wellington Botanic Garden and Exercise 45
minutes, three
Government House – the only other Receiving the honour from Horticulture
gardens at the same prestigious level New Zealand and the New Zealand
03
to five times a
in Wellington. Garden Trust was recognition for the
standard of gardening and is something
01 & 04 / The garden's crowning
week for better
Gillies, a general practitioner who retired Gillies is proud of, he says.
glory: the water feature
in November, has been working in the 02 / Pete Gillies tends to his topiary
mental health.
garden as a hobby and says it’s evolved The Gillies Garden is open to the public 03 / Lush greenery fills the
over the past 20 years. by appointment at gardens.org.nz prestigious garden
04
Fast Five
01 02 03 04 05
Sustainable Eliminate single-use plastics. Reduce your carbon footprint. Cut back food waste. Challenge yourself Choose a cause. Find a charity that’s Make your house run better. Install
new year
Request drinks without straws, carry Do you really need to jump in the car instead to use all the fruit and veggies you filled helping the planet and the people on it, LED light bulbs, add insulation and seal
reusable bags to fill with loose produce of a 10-minute walk down to the dairy for up the fridge with at the farmers' market and donate your money or your time. up cracks and gaps in floorboards or
resolutions
at the supermarket and carry a water some milk? Every little bit helps: walk, bike, last weekend. Soups, roast salads and Choose something that speaks to you, windows. Not only will this mean your
bottle and keep cup. skateboard or scoot as much as you can to stews are good ways to make sad veggies whether it’s trying to eliminate child poverty house needs less energy to run, but it will
reduce unnecessary emissions. delicious and appetising, and fruit can be or cleaning up our coastlines, and find out also save you money on your power bills.
thrown in a smoothie or used in baking. how you can help locally or donate funds.
2 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 3
G greater good /
cover story
Women in medicine
Healthy I love connecting
connections
people. I’ve always
been a person who
says, ‘You’re moving
Wāhine Connect started with to Wellington? I know
a Facebook post and has
blossomed into a growing someone there and
network of 200 mentors
helping other women in the I think you’ll get on
health sector.
really well’.
In May 2017, she posted on the NZ
Women in Medicine Facebook group
The not-for-profit was established suggesting a formal mentoring network
in 2017 with the aim to help build for women in health and was floored by Juliet Rumball-Smith
networks and connections for women the response.
in healthcare, providing mentoring
to help with the challenges and issues “I received more than 70 messages in 48
they face professionally and personally; hours. Some were from women seeking MAS has come on board with funding “This year has been about making
and assisting with advice around professional support. They were wanting for the last five months, which has Wāhine Connect scalable and sustainable,
career progression. to develop their careers, work through allowed Wāhine Connect to register as and this evolution wouldn’t have been
some difficult decisions. Others wanted a charity and set up its organisational possible without the support of MAS, and
Run initially as a six-month pilot more personal support. Some described structure. Rumball-Smith hopes the I was also really lucky to have Pegasus
programme, Wāhine Connect was the feeling isolated, overwhelmed by a new partnership with MAS continues to Health and Northland District Health
brainchild of public health physician role or position, struggling to balance all grow well into the future. Board get behind my idea and facilitate
Juliet Rumball-Smith, who describes the demands on their time.” the pilot,” she says.
its beginnings as a “light bulb moment”. “At the moment, I’m running it in my
Rumball-Smith says she was particularly spare time, so long term, we need to fund The pilot matched 56 mentees as well as
“I love connecting people. I’ve always amazed by the “scores of women” who staff to keep things going. I’ve had a lot holding a series of webinars and events.
been a person who says, ‘You’re moving reached out offering to help others. of help from the broader community, Despite the end of the six-month pilot in
to Wellington? I know someone there particularly members of the NZ Women March 2018, many of the mentor/mentee
and I think you’ll get on really well’. “They had been through it or were in in Medicine Facebook group, which relationships are continuing to this day.
I wanted to use this approach to create the midst of it themselves – the struggle helped with piloting our registration
a network of women in health who can for work-life balance, the experience of forms, editing documents, supporting
provide flexible support for professional bias, the training and exams – and were the matching process and volunteering
and personal challenges.” offering to help in a multitude of ways.” as mentors. >>
4 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 5
G
It was useful to hear her
“Initially, she liked having someone otherwise be nervous to speak their
who understands what it’s like to go mind candidly in a way they may not
experiences with maternity
into a new system, and we had lots of if it was a mixed group.”
chats about how weird that is and the
leave. She’s been priceless
desperate urge to fix it. But now we’re However, Hamilton has set up a
discussing more serious topics, random mentoring programme for all genders
in helping me balance being
spitball ideas. in her ED, and Clarke says she can see Wāhine Connect is set to relaunch in
a similar programme working well, early 2019, connecting more mentors
a consultant and a mum.
“It doesn’t feel like a chore. I’m a busy particularly with male junior doctors. with mentees and running more
person with lots on my plate, but it doesn’t webinars and events. In the long term,
feel like an additional duty,” she says. “I recently read a book on shame in the programme wants to expand into
Suzi Hamilton women, and at the end, it does touch other professions and become a multi-
Both Hamilton and Clarke say on shame for men and the expectation profession programme.
medicine can still be seen as a boys’ that you can be anything you like as
club, so having a programme set long as you’re not weak. Reaching out Rumball-Smith says ultimately stronger
up just for women is beneficial. can seem like a weakness, but I think it networks and connections among those
could benefit some of my younger male working in health will improve the sector
“It’s getting a lot better, but there’s colleagues to have people they can reach as a whole.
still a sexist approach in medicine,” out to for help when they have issues and
Hamilton says. things they’re unsure of,” Clarke says. “We know that team-based multi-
disciplinary care is better for patients
Clarke agrees: “Having specifically a and for clinicians. I’m using that theory
women’s mentor group adds a sort of with Wāhine Connect – that connecting
safety to it and allows women who would people of different disciplines has
benefits for us personally and for how
Hamilton got the role she applied for, learning how to be assertive and our sector works together as a whole.
and she says her relationship with her come across in the right way.”
mentor has continued with the pair “Ultimately, I’m hoping that it will help
catching up regularly via email. The relationships don’t just benefit not only women working in health but
mentees. Northland-based mentor also be of benefit for our patients and
“When something crops up, we get in Sarah Clarke says regularly speaking the wider health system.”
touch to discuss things. I recently went with her mentee has allowed her to
on maternity leave, and she has children rethink some opinions and reflect
so she’s a great person to speak to about on her career and experiences to date.
G greater good /
holiday living
08
05 14
12
04 02 13
10
03 09 11 15
01 06
Happy, safe, 07 16 17
stress-free
holidays
BEFORE YOU GO return home from holiday to to go on in different rooms at set alarms and sensors if you 11 Keep a picnic kit in your boot leaving the property.
01 Create a standard packing save that dreaded trip to the different times of the day. have them. – a blanket, some plates/cups/ 15 Turn the power off.
and action list that you can pull supermarket. 05 Turn off the water to prevent cutlery. Makes it easy to have 16 If boating, ensure your
out before every holiday. Include 03 Find a house/dog sitter to the risk of burst pipes flooding ON THE ROAD spontaneous picnics and handy auxiliary motor is removed
things like emptying the waste take care of your house or pets the house, which can cause 08 Ensure items in roof pods if you have young kids. from the boat or, if not,
It’s the time of year when many Kiwi disposal, the rubbish bin and while you’re away so you know massive damage to your or on roof and bike racks are 12 Keep your valuables out deadlocked to the transom.
families pack the car and head away the jug, turning off heated towel your pets will be well cared for property. secured from theft. of sight. 17 Remove water skis and
for their summer holidays. While this is rails and underfloor heating, in your own home. 06 Keep valuables locked 09 Pre-check your tyre wakeboards from your boat
meant to be a relaxing time, it’s best to organising for the recycling 04 Ask a trusted friend or away and not visible through pressures and check all lights HOLIDAY HOUSE overnight.
plan ahead to avoid the risk of burglary, to go out and cancelling any neighbour to check on your windows. are working. 13 If you have had tradespeople
injury or damage to your property or subscriptions. property and clear the mailbox 07 Be sure to do one last 10 If towing, ensure your car in since your last stay, consider
family. MAS staff have provided some 02 Plan an online grocery and put away recycling or check that all windows and is rated for the weight you changing the lockbox number.
tips for a stress-free holiday. delivery for the day you rubbish bins. Set timers for lights doors are securely locked and are towing. 14 Turn mains water off when
8 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 9
P professional life /
profile
Opposite and below / Lauren Croft, design engineer
While Croft always felt supported by her percent more women in engineering and issues so they can make the best decisions
organisation and the engineering industry, architecture roles by 2021. for themselves and their business,” she says.
she struggled to find female mentors and
role models, simply because there weren’t The Diversity Agenda boasts 76 engineering On top of her work with the Diversity
many women in senior leadership positions. and architecture organisations, including Agenda, Croft is very active in her
Croft’s employer Holmes, that have signed community, chairing Engineering New
“It’s harder to find female role models to look up to the cause. It has recently announced Zealand’s Young Engineers Wellington
up to in this industry. Coming in as a woman, a partnership with Diversity Works New group since 2016, which has always
you see your male peers who have unlimited Zealand, which will accelerate the agenda strongly advocated for a 50/50 gender
mentors to look up to, and while I also have by offering unconscious bias training balance. Croft is also featured in the
male mentors, it’s hard to find those female workshops and providing additional emerging talent for the Infrastructure
role models to look up to. resources for organisations. New Zealand Committee and works closely
with the Keystone Trust, a charitable trust
supporting students into property-related
tertiary studies.
Women make up less than a The only way that’s going to change
quarter of engineering students As for changes she wants to see in her
in New Zealand, and just 14 is by getting more women up the industry in the future, Croft is hopeful that
percent of engineers in the diversity becomes the norm.
workforce are women – but ladder. It’s hard to define your career
all that’s changing thanks to “My dream would be that it’s not unusual to
a diversity initiative. path and your career progression have a full design team of females, and that
would be nothing to comment on. That’s
Diversity in the workplace Lauren Croft is used to being one of the when you can’t see examples of that. something that really excites me – for these
only females in the room. From the moment conversations to not need to happen any
How one female
she enrolled to study engineering at the more and that this becomes normality in
University of Canterbury in 2011, she knew this industry,” she says.
she would likely spend the rest of her career “The only way that’s going to change is by Croft’s role within the Diversity Agenda
engineer is
in the minority. getting more women up the ladder. It’s hard sees her sitting on the Wellington steering
to define your career path and your career committee alongside other young female
Croft, now a design engineer at Holmes progression when you can’t see examples of engineers and facilitating workshops as
making change
Consulting in Wellington, found university that. Our industry, especially at those higher well as actively participating in her own
a supportive environment and says issues levels, is male dominated,” she says. organisation’s diversity group.
like pay disparities, inflexible hours and
being passed over for promotion tended to Change is afoot in the engineering industry, “One of the great things that will come out
develop for women later on in their careers, and Croft is seeing more and more women of the Diversity Agenda is the accountability
rather than straight out of study. stepping into senior leadership roles that – every organisation who signs up has to
were traditionally held by men. actively show that they are working towards
“Every engineer would like to think that they this goal.
come into the workforce at the same level Croft is part of an exciting movement in her
when they come out of university, which is industry, the Diversity Agenda: a partnership “A main goal with the Diversity Agenda is to
true in my experience – but it’s the future between Engineering New Zealand, the New educate both organisations and individuals.
development, when women are trying to Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) and the Every workshop we’ve hosted has sold out.
further their careers, where it becomes an Association for Consulting and Engineering Clearly there’s a real demand for them and Visit hub.mas.co.nz to see more
issue,” the 26-year-old MAS Member says. Professionals (ACENZ), which aims to get 20 people are wanting to get educated on these from women in engineering.
10 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 11
G greater good /
cyber
P professional life /
mas elective scholarships
MAS cyber-security expert
A brighter future
Sydney Kanda
MAS ELECTIVE
SCHOLARSHIP
• Open to all current medical
The first two recipients of the MAS Elective students, the scholarships
Scholarship for medical students will be will be granted quarterly
heading to London and Cambridge in early to line up with elective
2019 to further their specialist studies. periods.
• Applicants need to write
The scholarship, which Building on her work at the a 1000-word essay
contributes to the cost of an Southeast Asia Burns Centre answering a question
WHAT TO DO IF YOU’RE elective placement, launched at Singapore General Hospital stipulated by MAS.
CYBER-BULLIED ahead of the first quarter as well as the National Burns • Winning scholarship
Protecting against
medical elective period, and Centre at Middlemore Hospital recipients will share their
01 Talk to the person who is University of Auckland students in New Zealand, See wishes experience by writing
bullying you. Make them aware Isabel See and Logan Williams to further her research a monthly blog for
online bullies
that you know what they’re were the inaugural winners. and clinical experience hub.mas.co.nz and writing
doing to you and demand they in more reconstructive a summary (or submitting
stop interfering with your life. See will be undertaking her surgery subspecialities at a video) of the elective
Tell them that the law protects elective at the Plastics and Addenbrooke’s Hospital, one experience and how the
you and, if things continue, law Reconstructive Surgery of the world’s leading clinical scholarship helped.
enforcement may be involved. Department at Cambridge and academic teaching • The next available elective
In October, MAS launched a benefit for the victims of University Hospital NHS institutions. period opens on December
cyber-bullying for its Members, and a Netsafe report revealed 02 If you think you want to Foundation Trust from 11 and closes on March 7
that cyber-bullying costs New Zealand $444 million a year. report the cyber-bullying, you’ll January to February 2019. During her time at Cambridge, for the elective period
Allanah Casey from Umbrella talks about the issues surrounding need to have evidence of this, See will also be collaborating May to August 2019.
cyber-bullying and why it was important to establish this benefit so keep records of anything Through her combined clinical with a highly esteemed plastic • Visit mas.co.nz for more
as part of MAS Lifestyle and Residential contents policies. that’s said or done to you. You and research attachment at and reconstructive surgeon information.
can record phone conversations Cambridge, See says she wants to investigate the reliability of
What is cyber-bullying? alone, almost a third of Kiwis had received MAS BENEFIT FOR THE to use as evidence if you need to challenge the commonly using the double-pedicled
Cyber-bullying is repeated and ongoing unwanted digital communication, with VICTIMS OF CYBER-BULLYING to take the step of getting law associated stigmatised notion lower abdominal free flap
attacks online that can come in many forms, nearly 9 percent* reporting that these enforcement involved. that reconstructive surgery, technique for postmastectomy
such as calling people offensive names experiences negatively affected their Under MAS's Lifestyle or Residential contents particularly plastic surgery, unilateral autologous breast
online, posting embarrassing content ability to perform daily activities. policy, a Member will be able to claim up to 03 Keep any messages that is a tool for personal beauty reconstruction. She is also
(including photos and videos), discrediting $5,000 per year for cyber-bullying expenses, are sent to you, whether they enhancement. preparing for an opportunity
or posting false information, ostracism and What are the consequences? including counselling, rest and recuperation, are by text, email, WhatsApp to present her research at the
exclusion, stalking or harassing via phone or The most common consequence for cyber- lost salary, relocation, private tutoring or other messaging services “More often than not, the 14th Annual Academic Surgical
the web, impersonating someone or sexually bullying victims was stress, which often has and school enrolment if relocating to an or in forums. job of the plastic surgeon Congress in the United States.
harassing, threatening or intimidating them. flow-on consequences, such as difficulty alternative school is necessary. is deemed as ‘non-life- within the developing motor
concentrating at school or work. Bullying can 04 Talk to someone. You saving’. This way of thinking Meanwhile, Williams is network in the neonatal brain
Who is affected? also damage people’s self-esteem and lead As a mutual, MAS has a long history of caring might want to talk to a friend completely neglects the passionate about neonatology and motor outcome in later
Most commonly, cyber-bullying is talked to feelings of hopelessness. At the extreme for the health and wellbeing of Members and or consider counselling if you close affiliation between and neuroimaging and is childhood,” he says.
about as a problem for pre-teens and end, cyber-bullying can lead to clinical their families. It’s just one way we actively think your mental health is reconstructive surgery and wanting to complete an eight-
adolescents. According to a 2016 report anxiety and depression, self-harm behaviour, seek to make a positive difference towards being affected. If the cyber- one’s psychological wellbeing week research project looking The goal is to develop
by the Cyberbullying Research Centre, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and even the wellbeing of your family and protect bullying is happening in your and mental health,” she says. at cerebral palsy at the Centre improved methods to
27 percent of young people aged 10 to 18 suicide attempts. Especially for those who what you care about most. workplace, speak to HR – be for the Developing Brain at understand the underlying
report being victims of cyber-bullying at experienced more severe online bullying, sure to have evidence of King’s College London. pathophysiology at an early
some stage in their lives. common consequences include problems Visit hub.mas.co.nz to learn more about the bullying – and get your stage to help improve the
with friends, family or romantic partners, what cyber-bullying is and what you can managers involved. No one “My project [at King’s College ability to diagnose cerebral
The problem is also more common among damage to their reputation, problems at do if you or a family member is affected. should have to put up with London] will be exploring palsy earlier before the
adults than you may think. In New Zealand, school and work, financial loss and even messages or behaviour that the relationship between motor deficit has clinically
research from Netsafe found that, in 2017 trouble finding a job. * Source: Netsafe report makes them feel inadequate. functional connectivity manifested.
12 summer 2018 13
G greater good /
business
The cups will live in the café and will be decisions that need to be made, but we of disposable equipment, and each thing
available to all staff. They’ll be able to know those big changes take years so comes in its own package so there are
leave them at various spots around the it’s really down to the individual for other areas we can reduce waste,” he says.
hospital where they’ll be collected by reduction of waste,” Lance says.
cleaning staff who’ll return them to the The goal is to have sustainability
kitchen where they’ll be cleaned. The sustainability steering committee’s integrated into every area of the hospital
first change was eliminating all so that each department, purchasing
Lance says the response from staff has disposable plastic and styrofoam cups decision and contract signed has
been overwhelmingly positive: “The main and to give all new doctors an aluminium sustainability at its heart.
comment we’re hearing is ‘what else?’” water bottle.
Within a year or two, they plan to reduce
the DHB’s greenhouse gas emissions, with
goals like solar panels and replacing light
bulbs with LEDs. There’s an e-bike that
staff use for home visits, and the hospital’s
car fleet is now one-third hybrid – a step
in the right direction, Monaghan says.
But they are conscious of educating staff
without nagging or becoming a burden.
“We’ve got education campaigns, and
we’re doing little things like changing our
recycling bins so that the paper bin won’t
01
accept bottle-shaped objects. Overall,
Setting sights
we want sustainability in every facet of
the hospital and our staff to feel positive
about it.”
02 03
on sustainability
Every day I saw …we’re doing little things like changing
Monaghan says there’s a lot of
commitment from hospitals across the
this rubbish bin our recycling bins so that the paper bin
country. They’re part of the Sustainable
Health Sector National Network New
full of disposable won’t accept bottle-shaped objects
Zealand, which includes almost every
hospital and DHB in the country and gets
Small changes are having a big
coffee cups, so I
Headed by emergency specialist Dominic together to discuss issues and successes.
Dominic Monaghan
impact on the throwaway culture Monaghan, the group of about a dozen It’s helped by the Health Minister’s
at Hutt Hospital.
started thinking
nurses, doctors, administrators and other commitment to get all hospitals to reduce
hospital staff are committed to finding The use of plastic plates and cutlery in “We installed a drinking fountain, which their greenhouse gas emissions.
about how we
Hospitals are notorious for their reliance ways of cutting down unnecessary waste the cafeteria is the next issue to tackle. has been a high point of this project.
on single-use, disposable products. and educating staff, patients and visitors We’ve got the funding for a second water However, with tight budget constraints,
could reduce that.
The origins of the throwaway culture of ways to reduce, reuse and recycle. “The cafeteria waste issue is something fountain too, which will encourage committed volunteers are often left
probably lie in hospitals’ need for that everyone is exposed to every day, people to refill their own bottles rather pushing the project.
convenient sterile medical products, “So far, we’ve been trying to get our and the plan is to phase out plastic and than buying new ones,” Monaghan says.
Sean Lance
but the disposable dependence has baselines, and our aim is to turn the actually start washing stuff again,” “We need support from the outside so
spread well beyond the medical wards. hospital into a responsible citizen of the he says. All patients throughout the hospital we’re grateful for any assistance, like what
community and teach good habits that out – he estimates at least 150 a day – are now given water glasses rather than we received from MAS, that helps us meet
At the start of the year, a group of staff and patients will then take with and wanted to do something about it. Monaghan and Lance are in agreement disposable plastic cups, and Lance says our goals and provide more visibility for
concerned staff members decided it them,” he says. that small steps that people can do there are other areas where waste could the project,” Monaghan says.
was time for change. They formed a “There’s a big coffee culture in the hospital themselves will have an impact through be reduced.
sustainability steering committee and The most recent addition is 50 reusable where all the teams go down to the café scale and over time. 01 / Champions of sustainability
Dominic Monaghan (left) and Sean Lance
started implementing a series of small coffee cups donated by MAS for the and get a barista coffee. Every day, I saw “It’s not only about the environmental
02 / MAS has donated 50 reusable
progressive steps towards their goal hospital’s cafeteria. Medical registrar this rubbish bin full of disposable coffee “It’s about taking responsibility and cost. It feeds other things like choosing coffee cups to Hutt Hospital
of minimising waste and having a Sean Lance said he noticed how many cups, so I started thinking about how we seeing how small things can change the wisely when ordering tests for patients 03 / Monaghan and Lance are working to
greener footprint. disposable coffee cups were being thrown could reduce that.” big picture. Sure, there are big policy that will actually add value. There’s a lot progress the hospital’s throwaway culture
14 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 15
M money /
investments
“The last financial crisis was The next big one? “Investors don’t need to fear As you go through life and your Benefit from the downturns “From time to time, you get
Is the
extraordinary. It was the worst Speaking to OnMAS in that any day they could wake up situation changes, you need A weakened share market these opportunities to do very
economic situation since the mid-October during a time to a horrendous repeat of 2008 to ask yourself this question doesn’t need to be a bad thing well because the definition of
Great Depression. I don’t think of volatility on Wall Street that under way. The 2008 crash took again, and if the answer has if your risk horizon is further a crash or crisis is sellers are
next crash
the next downturn will be as caused markets to wobble two years to build up, so these changed, it’s time to change ahead. Those who panic and panicking or have to sell, such
bad as 2008. I can’t say it won’t around the globe, Doyle was aren’t random events.” your portfolio. Doyle says this sell shares are missing out as a fund manager who has had
be, but I don’t think it’s right to calm. He said events like the is particularly important as you on what could be large gains people withdraw from their fund.”
coming?
assume it will. October wobble are normal Economic slowdowns leading head into retirement. over a longer timeframe as the
and to be expected because to recessions are the most market recovers, while those Doyle says there’s always a
“When I started in the share we are in the final third of the common cause of tough periods “If you’re needing to draw down who buy shares at a lower price buyer, even in the worst part
market in the mid 1990s, most long economic recovery that on the market. These cause from your portfolio to pay your can benefit from these rises. of a financial crisis, and those
New Zealanders I talked to said followed the GFC. people to lose their jobs so they power bill or to buy groceries, people with a long time horizon
they’d never invest in shares have less money to spend. This that automatically says to me “When we’re advising our and a good tolerance for risk
again because of the 1987 crash “At the moment, I’d put what means companies are unable you’ll be wanting a lot less shares investors, we make tilts when will be the ones to benefit.
We’re living in Whether or not they’re accurate that was their recent memory. we’ve seen in 2018 into the to raise prices leading to a fall in and more bonds and cash. we think markets are expensive.
increasingly nervous remains to be seen, but their It’s taken a generation to get rid ‘rising risk’ category. The best profits, and the knock-on effect For example, we’ve made a
times. Barely a week statements can cause jitters and of that mindset, and now people statistic I have to summarise of that is falling share prices. “It doesn’t mean you should small tilt away from New Zealand
goes by without an uncertainty among investors, have the opposite view because that is that, when you look at own no shares, but you need shares at the moment, but if the
economic pundit with many questioning whether the New Zealand share market 2017, there were three days Risky business to complete a lifestyle analysis – markets got really cheap, we’d
predicting the next they should adjust their has done so well.” where equity markets fell more So given all this, what should what lifestyle are you expecting say investors should own more.
big financial crash or investment portfolios. Bernard than 1 percent in a day, so that we invest in? Doyle says it all to have and what are your other
economic downturn Doyle of JBWere says that, if your Doyle says the global share was a nice year really. This year, comes down to two things: sources of income or support.”
on the horizon. portfolio is making you nervous, market cycle since the middle so far there have been 21, so how you feel about risk and
you’ve probably got the wrong of last century has seen a dozen that doesn’t necessarily mean how soon you need the money.
investment strategy. or so bear markets or periods things are going down but it’s
when a market declines in value definitely a bumpier ride.” “The biggest indicator of risk
“You shouldn’t be losing sleep by more than 20 percent, but appetite is to ask yourself if you
over your investment portfolio. most of these events didn’t Doyle says there’ll be clues need to touch the money in the
In fact, quite the opposite. It have the severe impact of the and warning signs before the next seven to 10 years. If that
should be giving you peace GFC, and in each case, markets next major economic downturn, money is invested in the share
of mind, not sleepless nights.” rebounded to higher levels than just as there were in 2008. market, I’d be confident that,
before each downturn. over that period, you’d get a
Since the Global Financial Crisis reasonable return, but I couldn’t
a decade ago, investors have say that with confidence over
Bernard Doyle / JBWere had relatively smooth sailing a one to three year horizon.”
on global stock markets that
have seen high returns with
only a few brief interludes of A weakened share
stormy weather. But because
the GFC is still fresh in investors’ market doesn’t need
memories, there’s a tendency
in some quarters to assume to be a bad thing if
another economic downturn will
become a similarly catastrophic your risk horizon is
global meltdown. Doyle does
not believe that’s likely. further ahead.
16 17P professional life /
health
“The balance of concern for their health, along with the a way to fill a void of an emotional need that isn’t
risk of offending, can be challenging. The other side of being fulfilled by their parents at home.”
Weighing in
the equation – and perhaps the side that needs a closer
look – is the emotional element of why children become Lee says it can be very difficult to teach children to deal
The emotional
overweight in the first place.” with their emotions correctly – especially when it comes
to food. Guiding kids around the idea that food is a fuel
dimension
Plummer says that many children, like adults, use food rather than a comfort begins with how the child perceives
as a crutch in times of stress or anxiety. Bad eating food and the reasons why we eat.
of childhood
habits might be a response to problems at home or
an unpleasant social environment at school, and “Starting a vegetable garden at home or getting them
obesity
they can soon become entrenched, reinforced by involved in cooking is the best way for them to learn
the negative body image that comes from being what the real use of food is. Once they understand the
overweight. A child’s relationship with food and body true purpose and power of healthy foods, the less likely
image can start to solidify around five years of age, they are to reach for a sweet when they’re feeling bored
along with many habits we bring into adulthood. or lonely,” says Plummer.
Doctors’ orders
Plummer says it’s a very difficult conversation to have
when a heavier kid comes into her office, and keeping
the balance of medical advice and emotional support
can be almost impossible.
“You don’t want to offend when they’re at such a
sensitive age and there is already so much pressure
on them, but at the same time, you really want to help
prevent their weight creeping up into adulthood and
their health deteriorating.”
Starting a vegetable Plummer says, especially with teenage girls, there is a
deep fear that comments about weight can snowball
garden or getting them in the opposite direction, such as eating disorders like
anorexia. She believes that the more we talk about
involved in cooking is weight management and making healthy choices,
the easier it will become to fix the problem.
Overweight and obese children are facing the best way for them
more than just impacts to their physical “Under 18s can be incredibly susceptible to comments
health. Their mental health is also suffering. to learn what the real regarding their weight. To even mention they might need
to make healthier choices can be taken the wrong way.
In 2017, the Ministry of Health measured 12 percent of kids in use of food is. Caitlin Plummer The only thing we can do is keep talking about it until it
New Zealand as obese, up from 8 percent a decade earlier. becomes less taboo and a more comfortable subject.”
With a further 21 percent of Kiwi kids classified as overweight,
it’s a health crisis with potentially far-reaching impacts if one- Children who are larger than others are often A journey to health
third of our children continue to be overweight into adulthood. significantly emotionally affected by their weight, Not every overweight child goes on to be an overweight
especially as they progress into their teen years. adult. Weighing in at 169 kilograms, Auckland social
A lot of focus on finding a solution for the crisis has been on media influencer and makeup artist Simone Anderson
healthy eating education. The gospel of healthy living is drilled Class in session was just 23 when she realised things weren’t getting
into us from a young age. Kids are encouraged by their parents, Wellington teacher Dianne Lee has been working in any better and resolved to make changes.
teachers and sports heroes to be as active as possible and make primary schools for over four decades and says she
healthy food choices. But a growing number of people who work has seen an increase in mental health and behaviour “I was missing out on life. There were so many things
with children are questioning whether we are underplaying the problems in the past 10 years, often watching it I couldn’t do and things I was afraid of. There wasn’t
emotional dimension of obesity. translate into unhealthy eating habits. one big ‘wow’ moment. It was years of feeling like
I wasn’t living my best life and knowing that I had
A general practitioner of 25 years, Dr Caitlin Plummer says, “It’s quite obvious when you can see children using food to make a change there and then.”
as a parent, teacher, friend or family member, it can be hard as an emotional comfort. Sometimes it’s a way of dealing
to navigate the situation when a child is overweight. with bullying or social isolation, and other times it can be >>
18 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 19P L good living /
business
01
I didn’t know anyone
else struggling with
their weight, and I felt
alone in my journey.
Simone Anderson
>
Today, Anderson makes a living from her weight loss out for early signs of emotional eating and working with on a white sand beach in southern Thailand
01 / Shakti's Jon Heslop (left) and George Lill
story. In June, she published a book, Journey to Health, doctors to develop techniques to guide patients in the opened their eyes and began to change Lill’s first experience was similar to 02 / Shakti mats have proven popular in
and makes a comfortable living as a social media right direction will be key factors to a lasting solution. their lives. many others’ initial reaction. He found New Zealand
20 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 21L
M money /
insurance
L good living /
travel
Searching for
something
days of the incident. Significantly, theft “If you operate the Airbnb without notifying
of cash, jewellery, art, collectibles and any your insurer, you run the risk of forgoing any
Airbnb
damage caused to shared common areas cover at all,” Wratt says.
of the building are not covered by Airbnb’s
host guarantee. Even if your insurance covers a traditional Swimming with whales in Tonga
rental arrangement, this may not be suitable
host insurance
“Hosts can get caught out with these terms for Airbnb as there is a continuous flow of
and conditions, but if you make yourself aware new ‘tenants’ coming through the property.
obligations
of what the host guarantee includes and It’s important to be clear about your situation Writer Chris Brown
excludes, you might not even need to make by letting your insurer know if you are renting
a claim on your personal insurance,” he says. out a room or the entire house. If the home When I tell my friends I’m just back
is solely for Airbnb purposes, it will require from a week in Tonga, there’s only
What happens when you list It’s vital for new Airbnb hosts to talk to a commercial insurance policy. polite interest. But when I tell them
your house on Airbnb and it’s their insurer to understand the extent I went swimming with whales, ears
somehow damaged by your of their cover. “We have had some scenarios where claims prick up, faces lean in closer and I
visiting guests? have been made but we weren’t notified get reverent looks. The floor is mine.
about the Airbnb status prior. Claims can be
Airbnb is growing in popularity as an declined on that basis, so don’t assume that It’s pretty clear to me that we’ve developed a ‘thing’
alternative source of income for Kiwis. it will be in place automatically. about whales, verging on cultural obsession. Revered
Aussie novelist Tim Winton recently wrote a story about
In 2017 alone, New Zealand Airbnb hosts “Intentional or malicious damage is a swimming with Aussie whales for The Guardian entitled
accommodated 1.4 million guests in their common exclusion for most policies, “I’m face to face with Ningaloo’s living miracles and it
homes across the country. And while most including MAS’s standard policy, but in feels holy”.
of these stays went off without a hitch, some an Airbnb scenario, we can provide an
inevitably turned into an insurance claim, extension to cover potential damage with Earlier this year, a southern right whale and her calf
and not all were resolved smoothly. a limit imposed,” he says. spent a week in Wellington Harbour and left the city’s VISITING TONGA
harbourside roads gridlocked with traffic jams of
Unfortunately, some Kiwi Airbnb breathless whale chasers. I admit that I contributed
hosts discovered they didn’t have the to those jams, listening to radio reports and pursuing
insurance cover they thought as they the great creature and its progeny around the harbour. Humpback whales are
made the transition from family home SLEEP EASY WITH THESE FIVE TIPS FOR AIRBNB HOSTS But I never laid eyes on it. In fact, I had never laid eyes in Tonga between July
to accommodation provider. on any whale in my life. and October every
Image courtesy Grant Thomas year to birth their
Opening your home to strangers is always That was when I resolved to change that and signed calves and mate.
going to come with risk. You are entrusting 01 Talk to your insurer 03 Ensure you inspect 05 If it is a casual renting up for whale watching in Tonga’s Ha’apai island group.
people you don’t know with your belongings to establish what cover the property prior and situation, make sure
and property and expecting the same you have and what immediately after to check whether any Flying into Ha’apai, you get the feeling you’re off the lagoon with what our host claims is the best
respect and care you receive from any additional cover you each guest. If you are loss of income caused beaten track. The only road down the island crosses the snorkelling in all of Tonga. That’s a big claim, Air New Zealand flies
other houseguests, which unfortunately need to arrange before unable to do this due by damage is covered airstrip you’ve just landed on. Dogs need to be cleared but when I put on my fins and mask, there from Auckland to
isn’t always the case. you welcome your first to distance, make sure by your insurer. If your off the strip before each landing. are moments when I’m gasping through my Tonga’s main island
paying guest. you have someone else property becomes snorkel at the clouds of tiny coloured fish and Tongatapu. From there,
Airbnb provides a host guarantee to available to do this. uninhabitable for a We’re collected by our host, an affable Englishman soft pastel corals. But we’re not here to snorkel it’s a 45-minute flight
people renting out their homes, providing period of time and you who owns the Matafonua Lodge at the other end of the with tropical fish. We’re here for the spiritual to the Ha’apai group.
some insurance cover, but Marcel Wratt, have bookings in place island. As we drive up the island, it’s clearer still that this experience of swimming with whales.
Intermediate Underwriter at MAS, says it 02 Read up on the that you will no longer be island is well off the usual tourist beat. It’s all taro patches,
shouldn’t be used in place of insurance. Airbnb host guarantee 04 If the property able to take, potentially small houses, schools and churches. Someone tells The next morning, we’re on a boat with eight
and host protection, is solely for Airbnb leaving you out of us that, in the village nearest our resort, there are 300 others. I’m sitting on the roof of the boat’s Don’t make any travel
The host guarantee covers damage caused and take into account commercial use, you pocket, some insurers people and 40 churches. cabin, scanning the horizon under the tutelage plans for Sunday in
by guests to the property. However, cover the requirements and need to arrange a provide an extension to of our guide, who is teaching me how to spot Tonga. The day of
is subject to a myriad of conditions, one of timeframes for lodging tailored commercial cover this lost income. The resort is a delightfully simple collection of basic the tell-tale signs of a whale blowing its spout rest is enshrined in
which being that claims must be lodged claims. insurance policy. fales with a shared ablution block and a restaurant as it surfaces. the constitution of
before the next guest arrives or within 14 where guests gather for meals. It’s sited beside a coral >> this devout Christian
country.
24 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas membersL
1
We live in hope, and as we pile aboard the boat for day Lifuka serrated with outward facing teeth. They ascend fromP professional life /
student news
P professional life /
mas in the wild
School’s out encountered quite a bit over
the course of my degree so
for summer
far, but with my involvement
in the charity clinic and our
Community Day projects, it
really hit home this year. We get
bombarded by bad news all the
The student association included NZDSA keep cups time, but there are many, many on the New Zealand Medical
presidents reflect on for the first time. The newly people quietly getting on with Association board, provided a
the highs and lows of formed Environmental Group doing the good stuff. strong voice on two Ministry
2018 and what’s in store have many more encouraging of Health task forces, signed
for 2019. ideas for next year. What big changes have you the largest partnership deal in
seen over the past year in our history and represented
What are you most looking your industry? There have our membership on the
forward to for 2019? been some great welfare international stage in regard
Personally, I am looking changes such as no longer to the future of Australasian
forward to my new role as a being able to dock dogs’ tails. medical education.
MAS
first-year dental house officer The changes range across the
at Auckland DHB. However, board from household pets What was the biggest thing
the 2019 NZDSA Executive to production animals to how you learned this past year?
Movie
Committee and student body commercial seafood is killed. NZMSA is now bigger than ever
will be looking forward to the These came into effect at the before with 600 new medical
highly anticipated move into the beginning of October. students being welcomed
Charlotte Kenny
Night
new clinical services building. each year to our whānau, and
President / New Zealand This will see students transition What are you most looking we are rapidly approaching
Dental Students’ Association into digitally integrated clinics, forward to for 2019? For me a 3,000 strong membership.
with a promising increased and my classmates, it’s our final Running an association of that
What's been your highlight number of chairs to match the year of our degree – assuming size with a 30-strong executive
of 2018? This year, I have ever-growing class numbers. exams are passed. That means scattered across the country MAS Members
been proud of my executive we spend the majority of the has proven the value of effective gathered en masse
committee and our ability to year actually putting the last four communication. No matter at movie theatres
follow through on what was years of theory into practice. It’s how big or small the matter, it's across the country for
promised during our election incredibly exciting, but it will be important to make sure everyone the annual MAS Movie
campaigns. My personal focus a challenge. There is a certain involved is on the same page. Night in November.
has been on student advocacy, amount of trepidation as you As medical students, this is They were there for
and through communication find out if you really can do it. something we can take into our a night of magic and
with the faculty and students, professional lives as well. mystery, watching
I feel we have been able to Fantastic Beasts: The
alleviate potential issues as or What are you most looking Crimes of Grindelwald,
before they arise. Jibi forward to for 2019? I've been the second instalment
Kunnethedam on the NZMSA executive for the in J.K. Rowling’s
What's something that's Alisdair Eddie President / New Zealand last four years, and 2019 will be series, which follows
surprised you? It has been President / Massey Medical Students’ Association the first year I won’t be since the adventures of
encouraging to see the University Veterinary I became a medical student. I a magizoologist.
student body get involved Students’ Association What's something that look forward to seeing a fresh
in sustainability discussions surprised you this year? executive take the reins and
as to how we can promote What was the biggest thing How influential our voice has continue serving New Zealand
and increase sustainability you learned this past year? become this year. This year, medical students. On a personal
within the Dental Faculty. There are actually so many we convinced the government note, I can’t wait to be a TI
This is a topic the NZDSA is good people out there willing to change and extend their in Rotorua and go overseas
passionate about, and this year, to lend a helping hand. It’s EFTS student loan policy, gallivanting on my medical For more pictures, see
our members merchandise probably something I’ve established a student seat elective. facebook.com/mas.co.nz
28 summer 2018 on mas the magazine for mas members 29You can also read
