Dr Stuart Gowland, of Nelson, CNZM, for services to health and education
Dr Stuart Gowland developed the concept of a mobile surgical unit for general day surgery in rural communities.
He set up the company Mobile Surgical Services and campaigned for funding to establish a mobile surgical bus, which has since operated for 17 years, with almost 25,000 surgeries performed. He pioneered remote collaboration for rural health professionals, using video conferencing for continuing education and to reduce professional isolation. He initiated video conferencing during surgeries or consultations, and the service now offers close to 4,000 hours of training at 70 locations annually. He supported the setup of the New Zealand Telehealth Resource Centre.
Dr Gowland is a Trustee of the Pat Farry Rural Education Trust and was instrumental in setting up the Trust to lobby for improvements and funding for rural medicine.