Ian Ambury Miller Prior (16 October 1923 – 17 February 2009) was a New Zealand doctor,

epidemiologist Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evidenc ...

, environmental campaigner and arts patron. He is acknowledged as the founder of epidemiology in New Zealand. He conducted pioneering epidemiological studies of Māori,

Cook Islanders Cook Islanders are residents of the Cook Islands, which is composed of 15 islands and atolls in Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean. Cook Islands Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of the Cook Islands, although more Cook Islands Māori cur ...

and Tokelau Islanders in the 1960s. He was active in a number of environmental campaigns including the

International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) is a non-partisan federation of national medical groups in 63 countries, representing doctors, medical students, other health workers, and concerned people who share the goal of c ...

, and was well known for his support of the arts, in particular the Wellington Sculpture Trust.

Early life and education

Prior was born in Masterton in 1923, the son of Jessie Anne Prior (née Miller) and Norman Henry Prior (1882–1967), a Masterton general practitioner. His father served as a medical officer in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in Egypt, Gallipoli and on the Western Front. Norman and Jessie married in 1920. Prior had an older brother, Arthur Norman Prior (b. 1914), a noted logician and philosopher, from Norman's first marriage to Elizabeth (née Teague), an older sister Elaine and a younger brother Owen, who followed his father into the Masterton general practice. Prior attended Hadlow Preparatory School in Masterton and Wairarapa High School. He attended 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 ...

Medical School from 1940 to 1945 graduating

MB ChB Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

Career

Between 1946 and 1949, Prior held positions as a house surgeon at Wellington Hospital, a registrar at New Plymouth Hospital and a pathology registrar in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

. Deciding to specialise in cardiology he went to Britain in 1950 where he was a registrar in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

and then in

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at the National Heart Hospital. In 1953, he returned to New Zealand to Wellington Hospital where he was a senior registrar and then a physician. In 1959, he became director of the Medical Unit at Wellington Hospital and then the Epidemiology Unit, which he founded, from 1970 onwards. From 1987 he was an Honorary Fellow in the Department of Community Health (later Public Health) at the Wellington School of Medicine (University of Otago, Wellington). Prior's career in epidemiology was sparked by a report in 1960 into the incidence of coronary disease, diabetes and hypertension in Māori people and the questions this raised about lifestyle and the wider causes of illness. With assistance from a

Ngāi Tūhoe Ngāi Tūhoe (), often known simply as Tūhoe, is a Māori iwi of New Zealand. It takes its name from an ancestral figure, Tūhoe-pōtiki. ''Tūhoe'' is a Māori-language word meaning "steep" or "high noon". Tūhoe people also bear the sobriquet ...

leader, he undertook a study in

Whakatāne Whakatāne ( , ) is the seat of the Bay of Plenty region in the North Island of New Zealand, east of Tauranga and north-east of Rotorua, at the mouth of the Whakatāne River. Whakatāne District is the encompassing territorial authority, ...

. He extended his interest in Māori health to other Pacific peoples, in particular finding out how modernisation and changes in diet contributed to hypertension, diabetes and obesity. His first epidemiological study in the Pacific was in

Pukapuka Pukapuka, formerly Danger Island, is a coral atoll in the northern group of the Cook Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is one of most remote islands of the Cook Islands, situated about northwest of Rarotonga. On this small island, an ancient ...

in the northern

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

in 1964 where his team found that diabetes was uncommon and that blood pressure and weight did not increase with age. People ate traditional diets with little flour, sugar and salt and had strong family and social structures. In 1967, Prior began the Tokelau Island Migrant Study. Atolls in the

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, a ...

s had been damaged by cyclones and the New Zealand government enabled migration of Tokelau Islanders to New Zealand. Prior's research, which lasted 15 years until 1982, studied those who had migrated and those who stayed in the Tokelaus. It was found that the islanders who remained were healthier; those in New Zealand gained weight, had elevated blood pressure and an increase in rates of asthma, gout and diabetes. However, the migrants who maintained strong cultural ties remained healthier. The study was important for being a multi-disciplinary study of health within the social context of migration. Over the years a number of government,

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

and international organisations assisted the study: the World Health Organisation, the NZ Medical Research Council, the Wellington Hospital Board, the Navy, and the Office of Tokelau Affairs. In 1973, Prior took part in a study on Ponape Island in the

Caroline Islands The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the ce ...

. The results showed that high scores on an index of modernisation, e.g. schooling and newspaper reading, correlated with high blood pressure. Albatross sculpture from above

Arts patronage

Prior and his brother Owen created, in their father's memory, the Norman Prior Collection at Aratoi, Wairarapa Museum of History and Art in Masterton. Prior and his wife Elespie sponsored many emerging painters, sculptors, musicians and dancers. He was a founder of the Wellington Sculpture Trust in 1982 and its chair from 1997 to 2000.

Environmental, social and peace campaigns

In the 1960s and 1970s, Prior became involved in and chaired the campaign to prevent the raising of Lake Manapouri to provide electricity for an aluminium smelter at Tiwai Point. He protested against 'the dawn raids' which were carried out to arrest and deport illegal Pacific Island 'overstayers' in the 1970s. An opponent of apartheid Prior took part in protests against the 1981 tour by the Springbok rugby team. Prior chaired the Environment and Conservation Organisation (ECO) from 1976 to 1980. In 1982, with other doctors, he formed the New Zealand branch of the

(IPPNW). He was the New Zealand chairman from 1994 to 2001 and served on the IPPNW International Council from 1985 to 1990. Prior was on the founding board of, and helped to fund from a family trust, the ''Pacific Ecologist'' magazine.

Honours and awards

Prior was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours, for services to medicine and the environment. In 1981, he was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

. He was awarded an honorary DSc by

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well kno ...

in 1988. The Public Health Association of New Zealand made him a life member in 1990.

Personal life

Prior married Elespie Forsyth (d. 2002) in Dunedin on 14 March 1946. She was the great-granddaughter of early New Zealand businessman

Bendix Hallenstein Bendix Hallenstein (c. 24 January 1835 – 6 January 1905) was a German-born Jewish merchant, statesman, and manufacturer from Dunedin, New Zealand. He is best known for founding the retail clothing store Hallensteins, which still bears his name ...

, and her family were supporters of arts and culture and philanthropy. The couple had three daughters. He published two books about their lives and art collection.

Legacy

Prior is recognised as the 'founder of epidemiology' in New Zealand and his influence has been acknowledged in Australia and worldwide. He was able to bring together multi-disciplinary teams, including social scientists, use multi-disciplinary methodologies to address health problems and view the

determinants of health The social determinants of health (SDOH) are the economic and social conditions that influence individual and group differences in health status. They are the health promoting factors found in one's living and working conditions (such as the d ...

as being situated in society and the environment. Sir Michael Marmot has acknowledged Prior's influence in introducing him to epidemiology and public health.

Selected publications

Prior published over 200 articles between 1947 and 2000. *Prior, Ian.
Elespie & Ian: memoir of a marriage
'' 2006 *Prior, Ian.
Two unusual families: the origins of the Prior collection
'' 2005. *Howden-Chapman P, Pene G, Crane J, Green R, Iupati L, Prior I, Teao I. Open houses and closed rooms: Tokelau housing in New Zealand. ''Health Educ Behav''. 2000 Jun;27(3):351-62. doi: 10.1177/109019810002700309. PMID 10834808. *Wessen AF, Hooper A, Huntsman J, Prior I, Salmond CE.
Migration and health in a small society: the case of Tokelau
'' Oxford University Press, 1992. *Pearce N, Prior I, Methven D, Culling C, Marshall S, Auld J, de Boer G, Bethwaite P. Follow up of New Zealand participants in British atmospheric nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific. ''BMJ''. 1990 May 5;300(6733):1161-6. doi: 10.1136/bmj.300.6733.1161. PMID 2346802; PMCID: PMC1662929. *Salmond CE, Prior IA, Wessen AF. Blood pressure patterns and migration: a 14-year cohort study of adult Tokelauans. ''Am J Epidemiol.'' 1989 Jul;130(1):37-52. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a115321. PMID 2787109. *Prior IA, Welby TJ, Ostbye T, Salmond CE, Stokes YM. Migration and gout: the Tokelau Island migrant study. ''Br Med J (Clin Res Ed)''. 1987 Aug 22;295(6596):457-61. doi: 10.1136/bmj.295.6596.457. PMID 3117170; PMCID: PMC1247326. *Salmond CE, Joseph JG, Prior IA, Stanley DG, Wessen AF. Longitudinal analysis of the relationship between blood pressure and migration: the Tokelau Island Migrant Study. ''Am J Epidemiol.'' 1985 Aug;122(2):291-301. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114101. PMID 4014212. *Patrick RC, Prior IA, Smith JC, Smith AH. Relationship between blood pressure and modernity among Ponapeans. ''Int J Epidemiol.'' 1983 Mar;12(1):36-44. doi: 10.1093/ije/12.1.36. PMID 6601631. *Prior IA, Davidson F, Salmond CE, Czochanska Z. Cholesterol, coconuts, and diet on Polynesian atolls: a natural experiment: the Pukapuka and Tokelau island studies. ''Am J Clin Nutr.'' 1981 Aug;34(8):1552-61. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/34.8.1552. PMID 7270479. *Beaglehole R, Foulkes MA, Prior IA, Eyles EF. Cholesterol and mortality in New Zealand Maoris. ''Br Med J.'' 1980 Feb 2;280(6210):285-7. doi: 10.1136/bmj.280.6210.285. PMID 7357343; PMCID: PMC1600122. *Stanhope JM, Prior IA. Uric acid, joint morbidity, and streptococcal antibodies in Maori and European teenagers. Rotorua Lakes study 3. ''Ann Rheum Dis.'' 1975 Aug;34(4):359-63. doi: 10.1136/ard.34.4.359. PMID 1190855; PMCID: PMC1006428. *Prior IA, Stanhope JM, Evans JG, Salmond CE. The Tokelau Island migrant study. ''Int J Epidemiol.'' 1974 Sep;3(3):225-32. doi: 10.1093/ije/3.3.225. PMID 4416612. *Prior IA, Evans JG, Morrison RB, Rose BS. The Carterton study. 6. Patterns of vascular, respiratory, rheumatic and related abnormalities in a sample of New Zealand European adults. ''N Z Med J.'' 1970 Sep;72(460):169-77. PMID 5273561. *Prior IA, Davidson F. The epidemiology of diabetes in Polynesians and Europeans in New Zealand and the Pacific. ''N Z Med J.'' 1966 Jun;65(406):375-83. PMID 5222034. *Neave M, Prior IA, Toms, V. The prevalence of anaemia in two Maori rural communities. ''N Z Med J.'' 1963 Jan;62:20-8. PMID 13937838. *Prior, I. A health survey in a rural Maori community, with particular emphasis on the cardiovascular, nutritional and metabolic findings. ''N Z Med J.'' 1962 Jul;61:333-48. PMID 14488822.

References

External links

*''Luncheon under the Ash Tree'' (1960), painting of Elespie Prior by Evelyn Page a
City Gallery Wellington exhibition in 2006Photo of Ian Prior in the Tokelau Islands, 1971, in Te AraDr Ian Prior Tribute on RNZ, 3 March 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prior, Ian 1923 births 2009 deaths Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit University of Otago alumni New Zealand public health doctors People from Masterton People educated at Wairarapa College University of Otago faculty New Zealand epidemiologists Hallenstein family