Rate My Professor Jason Gurney

Professor Jason Gurney (Ngāpuhi), Research Professor in the Department of Public Health at the University of Otago, Wellington, serves as Director of the Cancer and Chronic Conditions (C3) Research Group. He earned a Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours from the University of Auckland and a PhD in biomechanics, focusing on lower-limb complications of diabetes. In 2010, Gurney was hired as a research fellow by Dr. Diana Sarfati to work on the original C3 study, which examined disparities in access to cancer care experienced by Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand. Since joining the University, his research has focused on describing and understanding health outcome disparities between Māori and non-Māori. Promoted to Professor in December 2024, Gurney leads multiple national-level projects on equity in health outcomes for Māori.

Gurney's academic interests center on cancer epidemiology, treatment access, post-operative mortality, the co-occurrence of cancer and diabetes, and cancer treatment and outcomes for Māori. As Principal Investigator of a five-year Health Research Council Programme Grant, he employs quantitative and qualitative methods to examine cancer treatment provision for Māori across all cancers, projecting forward to inform future services. He has led several HRC-funded projects and is seconded part-time as senior epidemiologist to Te Aho o Te Kahu – Cancer Control Agency, contributing to multiple initiatives. Gurney serves on the Public Health Advisory Committee, offering independent advice to the Minister of Health. Key publications include 'Patterns of treatment prior to death among those with lung cancer: A national study in a universal healthcare context' (2025, Lung Cancer), 'Inequities in failure to rescue for Indigenous Māori after gastrointestinal cancer surgery in New Zealand' (2025, British Journal of Surgery), and 'Supportive care needs and assessment tools for family caregivers of Indigenous people with cancer: A narrative review' (2025, Supportive Care in Cancer). In 2024, he published his first book, The Twisted Chain, which intertwines personal memoir, medical history, and public health action regarding rheumatic fever and was longlisted for Best Non-Fiction Book in the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards 2025. His contributions significantly impact policy and equitable health service provision.