Rate My Professor Lily Fraser

Dr Lily Fraser serves as Senior Professional Practice Fellow at the Kōhatu Centre for Hauora Māori within the Faculty of Medicine, Health Sciences Division, University of Otago in Dunedin. A proud descendant of Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, and Waitaha from Puketeraki and Pūrākaunui, she integrates Te Reo Māori into her daily practice and teaching. As part of the Kōhatu team, she delivers Hauora Māori education at the University of Otago Medical School, contributing to the development of future health professionals with a focus on Māori health perspectives. Fraser holds an MBChB from the University of Auckland (2005), making her the first graduate from a kura kaupapa Māori to complete medical studies and earn a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in Aotearoa New Zealand. She is also a Distinguished Fellow of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (FRNZCGP Dist, awarded 2023) and holds a Diploma in Child Health.

Fraser's career spans clinical practice, leadership, and advocacy for health equity. She worked as a General Practitioner and Clinical Director at Turuki Healthcare in Māngere, Auckland, from around 2011, where she mentored medical students, junior doctors, and registrars in a teaching practice. There, she pioneered a kaupapa Māori model of care emphasizing team-based support for patients and whānau, with a strong emphasis on prevention. In 2023, she returned to her Ōtepoti home, taking on the role of Clinical Director for Te Hā o Maru Health and Social Services (Te Kāika), operated by Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, delivering integrated health and social services to Māori, Pasifika, and low-income communities in Otago. A long-term member of Te Ohu Rata o Aotearoa (Te ORA) since 2014, she actively participates in Te Akoranga a Māui, the RNZCGP's Māori representative group, providing policy advice, advocacy, and support for Māori registrars pursuing specialist GP training. Her interests include metabolic health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, promoting low-carbohydrate healthy fat nutrition and kai as medicine. She co-authored the publication 'Telehealth as a tool for equity: pros, cons and recommendations' in the New Zealand Medical Journal (2021). In 2023, she received the Distinguished Fellowship from the RNZCGP for outstanding service to general practice, medicine, and community wellbeing, particularly in advancing Māori health equity through local, regional, and national roles. Fraser also chairs her whānau whenua block at Pūrākaunui and participates in Kāi Tahu's Kōtahi Mano Kāika initiative.