Ngaio Medical Centre

History

There has been medical practice in Ngaio since 1924 when an English graduate Dr Eldon Litchfield opened a surgery at the bottom of Awarua Street next door to the present building Prior to this time the area was served by doctors from Willis Street Drs Gilmer McGavin and Ewart These were the days when tonsils appendices and even gall bladders were removed on kitchen tables and hospital confinements were most unusual Early histories record the work of Dr Samuel Curl a former ships surgeon a Dr Graham Robertson from England and a Dr George Saunders from Aberdeendrbertramwright Dr Bertram Wright and young patient

A Dr Bertram Wright from Edinburgh worked in Johnsonville from 1920 He had lost an eye in a laboratory explosion when working as a chemist From the 1930s Dr Bob Aitken worked in Khandallah His home and surgery were situated among beautiful gardens now replaced by the Khandallah New World supermarket and car park He once recorded seeing 99 patients in the same day During the Depression he found that only seven percent of his patients were earning sufficient to be able to contribute to hospital care In 1935 the areas first district nurse Sister Hodder arrived Dr Aitken a likeable eccentric was what could have been described a a Type A personality There are many anecdotes about him including how when visiting the well known identity Snow Perkins the barber whose establishment was taken over by Stella in the mid 1970s he insisted on entering sitting in the chair getting his hair cut catching up on the gossip paying the bill and leaving all within a minute otherwise he would demand his money back Nevertheless he was nearly 100 when he died in 2000 Dr Graham Woods replaced him working in Ganges Road opposite the town hall from 1965

The Khandallah practice has since grown to six doctors and has moved around the corner to Dekka Street The Ngaio practice had moved to 29 Kenya Street behind the clock tower at the bottom of the hill The surgery operated from the homes stables which have since given way to a tennis court Dr Brian Kelly worked originally in this building before moving to Melbourne where he became an eminent cardiologist An Otago graduate Dr Joseph Costello and nicknamed Needle Joe by his patients worked during the 1930s up until 1952 He had a reputation for offering an injection for even the most trivial complaint An Irish graduate Patrick Delany who had worked in England during the war and later became a surgeon on a Royal Navy aircraft carrier took over Dr Costellos practice The warship along with officers was gifted to Australia at the cessation of hostilities and Dr Delany had no choice but to serve as an Australian On a two day goodwill visit to Wellington he met his future wife who had just finished serving with the NZ occupation J Force army in Japan After their marriage Paddy Delany took shore duties in Sydney but returned to Wellington on Dr Costellos death Paddys wife considered herself to be an amateur draughtswoman and designed the new purpose built practice which was opened in 19601960 Ngaio Surgery circa 1968 paddyandted
Drs Paddy Delany and Ted Harding

Two Holocaust survivors Drs Sluki and Gurstle helped out intermittently during this period The former lived and worked from the Georgianstyle building on Ottawa Road opposite the petrol station After completing postgraduate work in London Dr Ted Harding joined the practice in 1964 Each doctor worked a half day at either Ngaio or Johnsonville Ted was a fourth generation Wellington doctor Old photographs of Wellington show his great grandfathers fifteen roomed house and surgery designed by Thomas Turnbull built in 1878 on Perretts Corner The large house which contained a schoolroom on the ground floor was unfortunately demolished in the early 1970s

The 1960s and 70s were the golden years for general practice in many ways but house calls were numerous up to 25 each day obstetrics was normal and the doctors were perpetually on call Few of the ancillary services were available The Johnsonville Medical Centre was joined by Dr Barry McGuiness in the early 1970s After a number of years when Dr Alan Cockburn and later Dr Richard Tyler entered practice the Johnsonville doctors built a practice on Broderick Road leaving Drs Harding and Delany committed to Ngaio alone The region had grown substantially during these decades Churton Park Broadmeadows Chartwell and even much of Crofton Downs were not in existence until the 1970s In 1970 Dr Mary Coldham joined the practice and when she moved to Auckland in January 1983 Dr Denis Delany joined the practice
1983 Drs Paddy Ted and Denis

Dr Harding and both Dr Delanys held various positions in medical politics Paddy Delany was the first President of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners being responsible for the breaking away from the London mother organisation1984 1984 staff

Dr Harding was the Treasurer for many years and all three held various positions on the local College Faculty including Chairman Dr Paddy Delany also held various executive position in the Medical Association and the Medical Council He retired in 1990 after having been a doctor for over 50 years Various women worked in the practice including Drs Marian McInnes a long time Ngaio resident and parttime doctor from Titahi Bay married to John the well know local fishing authority who often parades around the suburb in his kilt Rachel HardyBoys who shifted to London and then home to Waikanae during the 1980s and Jenny Visser during the 1990stheengineroom The engine room Andrea Brigid and Marianne Photograph Courtesy of Colin McDiarmid

Dr Visser was the main instigator of renovating the buildings Major work was completed in 2001 Following a two year stint volunteering as the sole Medical Officer at the Kunde Hospital in Nepal on the track up to Everest Base Camp founded and built by Sir Edmond Hillary Dr Carol Nicholson joined the practice for a further five years Staff enjoyed her accounts of operating with an open text book and primus lamp under somewhat primitive conditions many miles from the nearest assistance She returned to her original home on Waiheke Island in late 2006 and was replaced by Dr Joelen Hays who lives in Ngaio but had worked in Lower Hutt Dr Judith Laing from Glasgow joined in 2004 and in 2005 we welcomed Dr Rosy Fenwicke who had previously worked in Eastbourne and the Hawkes Bay Another Otago graduate Isobelle Carbonatto joined in 2006 Born in Ecuador with a Dutch mother and French father of Italian descent Isobelle grew up in Australia Uruguay and later Karori Isobelle is married to Brendon who hails from Blackball Greymouth Brendon is a well know Paediatric Surgeonpresentdesign Present Design before trees

Dr Visser is now pursuing her interests in teaching at the Medical School and Travel Medicine working at the Vaccination Centre She has traveled a number of time to the Antarctic In 2005 Ted Harding retired and sadly died in August 2007

The practice also boasts a number of ancillary practitioners Dr Tim Halpine from Nebraska works two half days as a podiatrist Michelle Vincent who in a previous life worked as a top Wellington chef now works from the practice as a midwife We have had a number of psychologists over the years Unfortunately Jonathon Speirs has just decided to return to New York Roger Brooking Alcohol and Drug Counsellor works session each week

The Ngaio practice was one of the first in Wellington to be fully computerised but the aim of being quotpaper freequot has not been fully realized We are presently working toward Practice Accreditation hoping to be only the fourth practice in Wellington to achieve such status

We have recently completed major renovations moving the office upstairs and enlarging the Treatment Room Plans are underway to again renovate the files will be moved giving the receptionists move room