Rolland O'Regan

FRCS Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an intercollegiate basis by the four Royal Colleges of Surgeons (the Royal C ...

(born John Arthur Rolland O'Regan; 1 June 1904 – 20 November 1992) was a New Zealand surgeon, activist and politician. He was the son of judge Patrick O'Regan and the father of Richard Mark O'Regan and businessman and academic Sir

Tipene O'Regan Sir Tipene O'Regan (born Stephen Gerard O'Regan on 1 January 1939) is a New Zealand academic and company director. Biography Early life and career O'Regan is the son of surgeon Rolland O'Regan and Rena Ruiha (née Bradshaw). His mother was of t ...

Biography

Early life and career

O'Regan was born in 1904 and was educated at St Patrick's College. His father was Patrick O'Regan, then a Member of Parliament and later a prominent

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

judge of the

Arbitration Court Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) that resolves disputes outside the judiciary courts. The dispute will be decided by one or more persons (the 'arbitrators', 'arbiters' or 'arbitral tribunal'), which renders the ...

. He married Rena Bradshaw (of

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim), Mount Mahanga and Kahurangi Poi ...

descent) in 1932 and would later change his name by deed poll from John Arthur Rolland O'Regan to Rolland O'Regan.

Medical career

He received his tertiary education at the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

, where he studied medicine, graduating as a doctor in 1928. He became a house surgeon at Wellington Hospital for several years, before moving to Britain to do further postgraduate studies. He returned to New Zealand and set up a medical practice of his own. He supported the First Labour Government in their reform of the healthcare system, one of only a few doctors who did so. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he served as a surgeon aboard three different hospital ships (the ''Maunganui'', ''Oranje'' and ''Pacific Star'') where he was largely responsible for the evacuation of wounded Allied servicemen from

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

Political career

O'Regan got his first taste of political activism when he became the chairman of the Citizens' All Black Tour Association that called for the abandonment of the 1960 All Black tour to South Africa. He unsuccessfully lobbied for the government to intervene and cancel the tour alongside such figures as

George Nēpia George Nēpia (25 April 1905 – 27 August 1986) was a New Zealand Māori rugby union and rugby league player. He is remembered as an exceptional full-back and one of the most famous Māori rugby players. He was inducted into the New Zealand Spor ...

and

Vincent Bevan Vincent David Bevan (24 December 1921 – 26 May 1996) was a New Zealand rugby union player. Early life Bevan was born in the Horowhenua at Otaki, about halfway between Wellington and Palmerston North, and was the son of Winifred Bevan and Le ...

. He remained the chairman until 1966. In

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

O'Regan was elected to the

Wellington City Council Wellington City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the country's capital city Wellington, and ''de facto'' second-largest city (if the commonly considered parts of Wellington, the Upper Hutt, Porirua, Lower Hutt and ...

on a Labour Party ticket. He was a popular councillor, always polling highly, and topped the poll on two consecutive elections. He retired from the council in 1974. He was also a member of the

Wellington Harbour Board (Strong but true) , predecessor = , merged = , successor = , formation = , founder = , founding_location = , dissolved = , merger = , type ...

. He was first elected in 1968 and served three years as Charman (1971–74). O'Regan stood for election to the

New Zealand House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the sole chamber of the New Zealand Parliament. The House passes Law of New Zealand, laws, provides Ministers of the New Zealand Government, ministers to form Cabinet of New Zealand, Cabinet, and supervises the ...

for the Labour Party for the seat of in finishing runner-up. Soon afterwards O'Regan was approached to stand for Labour in the 1967 Petone by-election, however he was not selected as a candidate. From 1969 to 1970 he was a member of the Labour Party executive.

Later life and death

He was famed as a tireless public advocate; as President of the Cancer Society, a member of the Victoria University Council, the Wellington Polytechnic Council, the

Carter Observatory Space Place at Carter Observatory (or simply Space Place) is an observatory in Wellington, New Zealand, located at the top of the Wellington Botanic Garden. The site was originally home to the Wellington City Observatory (nicknamed "The Tin Sh ...

Board, and the

Wellington Free Ambulance Wellington Free Ambulance (WFA), also known simply as Wellington Free, is a charitable organisation providing free to the patient ambulance services in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand. History The Wellington Free Ambulance service wa ...

executive. O'Regan died on 20 November 1992, aged 88, and was buried at

Karori Cemetery Karori Cemetery is New Zealand's second largest cemetery, located in the Wellington suburb of Karori. History Karori Cemetery opened in 1891 to address overcrowding at Bolton Street Cemetery. In 1909, it received New Zealand's first cremato ...

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:ORegan, Rolland 1904 births 1992 deaths People educated at St. Patrick's College, Wellington University of Otago alumni New Zealand surgeons New Zealand military personnel of World War II Wellington City Councillors Wellington Harbour Board members New Zealand Labour Party politicians Unsuccessful candidates in the 1966 New Zealand general election Burials at Karori Cemetery 20th-century surgeons