Associate Professor Nicola Austin, of Christchurch, ONZM for services to children’s health
Associate Professor Nicola Austin is a leading paediatrician and clinical neonatologist, whose roles have included Clinical Director of the Neonatal Unit in Christchurch Hospital, Clinical Director of Christchurch Women’s Hospital, and Canterbury District Health Board’s Chief of Child Health. As President of the Paediatric Society of New Zealand, she oversaw a renewed strategy based on equity and Te Tiriti. She is Chair of the New Zealand Child and Youth Clinical Networks, guiding national standards of care, and is Clinical Associate Professor in Paediatrics at the University of Otago Christchurch School of Medicine, publishing nearly 100 peer-reviewed articles and co-supervising doctoral candidates. She has been instrumental in establishing clinical research in the Christchurch Women’s neonatal intensive care unit, and was a lead investigator for a preterm infants’ study, tracking the children’s development until 17 years of age.