The New Year Honours List 2025() was released by Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) at the end of 2024. Congratulations to our kaimahi who were appointed to The New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2025 New Year Honours.
Helen Pilmore: ()Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to nephrology and transplantation. Professor Helen Pilmore is a transplant nephrologist at Auckland City Hospital, having helped establish the simultaneous kidney/pancreas transplantation service in 1999. She has helped drive growth of transplants at the Auckland unit from 20 to more than 130 per year. She has been instrumental in developing systems that have seen patient and kidney survival rates in Auckland exceeding global benchmark standards. She has driven measures for disadvantaged people to access transplantation and has worked with colleagues in Canada and Australia to find and resolve transplantation barriers for Māori, Pacific and First Nations peoples.
Malcolm Legget:() Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to cardiology and cancer treatment and research. His Majesty's approval of this award took effect on 31 October 2024, prior to Dr Legget's death (on 1 November). Dr Legget was the director of echocardiology at Greenlane Hospital between 1995 and 2000 and went on to co-found The Heart Group. After his own diagnosis with neuroendocrine cancer in 2011, he became a leader in ensuring the best treatments possible were available to all New Zealanders. He led a programme of work to bring clinical expertise, a research programme, scans and treatment that were not available in New Zealand into the public health system, resulting in patients no longer needing to travel overseas to receive care. His work ensured access to world-leading treatments across the public health system.
We thank Helen and Malcolm for their significant services and contributions to our health system.
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