About our school

Our mission is to provide the knowledge and skills needed to improve the health of all people in New Zealand and the Pacific region by focusing on factors that affect the wellbeing of entire populations.

We strive to be a dynamic presence in Auckland, enhancing the intellectual, cultural and professional life of its communities.

Common to all the school's activities is a focus on the health and wellbeing of groups or populations, located locally, nationally and internationally (with particular emphasis in the Pacific region).

Fundamental to our work is a conviction that University teaching is best located in a research-rich environment, an appreciation that the causes of ill-health occur at all levels of complexity from the global to the molecular, and recognition of the Treaty of Waitangi as the founding document of New Zealand.

• Investigating the major causes of ill-health and health inequalities in New Zealand
• Developing and testing better means of preventing disease, disability and injury
• Examining the provision of health care and exploring ways in which health systems can be strengthened
• Working with the health workforce to find ways of gaining better health outcomes for populations
• Working with communities to enable them to develop resources and strategies to improve their health and wellbeing

We encompass disciplines and academic activities that focus on the prevention and treatment of ill-health and the promotion of health and wellbeing at the level of populations and communities. We bring together people with academic backgrounds in health sciences, social sciences and behavioural sciences.

While the primary focus lies on health areas of special interest and significance for Auckland and New Zealand, the school has strong links internationally, and in particular with researchers and health providers around the Pacific.