Why we need a name change for the College

Kia ora

We are a bi-national College and the current name of our College does not represent this. Many surgeons from Aotearoa New Zealand understand what it is like to be introduced internationally as being from the Royal Australian College of Surgeons. Many of us on this side of the ditch would like to have our role in the College recognised. This is not the first time we have had a referendum on a name change for our College, and it may not be the last. What is and where is Australasia? The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary gives two meanings of Australasia. One of these is: Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, and the neighbouring islands of the Pacific. Exactly which islands are not known. Other definitions include Melanesia and parts of the Pacific. None of this reflects our binational College. Aotearoa is a well-recognised name for our country. It is used in the United Nations and is the name Māori use in international Indigenous forums throughout the world. It is on our bank notes and in our passports. No matter what other name we call it, the first name of our country will always be Aotearoa. This name was gifted by the first navigators to discover this country—at first just for the North Island—but now accepted to mean the whole country. When Hinewehi Mohi first sang our national anthem in Māori before the opening match of the 1999 Rugby World Cup at Twickenham, there was such an outpouring of anger that anyone would dare sing the national anthem in Te Reo Māori. However, in the years that have passed, most see this as a ‘Gallipoli’ moment when we grew as a country and Te Reo Māori has become an integral part of life in Aotearoa New Zealand with increasing numbers of both Māori and nonMāori accepting the challenge to learn. Te Reo is now part of official government documents and recognised as an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand reflecting a growing pride that our country is built on the twin foundations of the best of contemporary achievement and an older, but no less valuable, Mātauranga Māori knowledge. Many other countries have now followed us in recognising the preciousness of their Indigenous languages, such as the Wallabies singing Advance Australia Fair in Eora before a tri-nations test against Argentina in 2020. Our College has made a concerted effort to improve health outcomes for all. We all know and understand that some groups do not have the same outcomes as others. A significant and ever-increasing breadth of literature has found that we, as doctors, are playing a significant role in maintaining health inequities. We accept, or feel we are powerless to alter the status quo. We all have biases that we don’t know we have and we, as a group, give and accept poorer outcomes for our Indigenous populations. This must change. We can no longer accept the status quo. To have an equal society we must create one. We need to support changing the status quo and partnering with Māori to improve this College for everyone. Including Aotearoa New Zealand in the College’s name is a significant step towards this, acknowledging both the history but also the future of both our nations. It represents equity, it represents a partnership between our ancestors, and the making of a future for our descendants.

Between our two countries we have done many great things first–women’s suffrage, the pacemaker, splitting the atom, inventing WiFi, even winning the Rugby World Cup. It takes time, hard work and courage to change the status quo. The College of Surgeons has an opportunity to lead global medical organisations by unequivocally including and acknowledging the significance and importance of Indigenous values and status in their name—clearly defining whom they serve and represent. This would be an international first and reflect the forward-looking innovation, which has always distinguished our College. To not do so is to risk being left behind. The integration of Māori and non-Māori customs and methodologies is already well underway in Aotearoa New Zealand. It’s not whether it will happen—it already is—in cabinet, the boardroom, business, health, education, sport, the arts, street signage, even product labelling. We support the new name for the College to represent all of us and our commitment to leadership in health and all the communities we serve: The Royal Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand College of Surgeons.

Māori Health Advisory Group Dr John Mutu-Grigg - Chair Associate Professor Jonathan Koea Dr Ben Cribb Dr Ben Wheeler Dr Alison Scott