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The University of Otago’s new vice-chancellor David Murdoch is “getting his feet under the desk” and ready to nurture the institution with which his distinguished career has been intertwined.

“This is the best decision I’ve ever made.

"It’s an opportunity to help the university move forward,” Prof Murdoch said.

He completed bachelor of medicine and bachelor of surgery degrees at the University of Otago in 1985, and a doctorate in medicine in 2003.

He was also the dean of the University of Otago’s Christchurch campus and head of pathology during the Canterbury earthquakes.

“By returning to Dunedin, I feel I know the University of Otago, but it’s also quite new,” he said.

Not that being in a leadership role is new to him.

“I’ve often found myself in leadership roles, even at an early age.

“I enjoy it because it’s a chance to effect change,” he said.

In the early 1990s, Prof Murdoch helped to run a remote Nepalese hospital with his wife, Dr Lynley Cook.

“We were a week’s walk from the nearest road and had no electricity.

“This was a life-changing experience,” he said.

As dean of the Christchurch campus, Prof Murdoch was involved in the planning of Te Papa Hauora, the city’s health precinct.

He was also one of three experts advising a University of Oxford team developing the Covid vaccine.

Now that he has returned to Dunedin, Prof Murdoch is also looking ahead to what he can do in his new role.

“Going forward, I think the university will be perhaps concerned with existential questions around infectious diseases and climate change,” he said.

Prof Murdoch also said his priorities would include reconsidering how the university delivered education and provided student housing in light of Covid. He also said considering the university's relationship with Maori populations was vital.

“Improving our relationship with local iwi is important. Partnerships with and representation of Maori at the university is essential,” he said.

Prof Murdoch is aware he is taking on his new role at an uncertain time. He said setting the right tone was important, and this meant being visible and available.

“I have a literal open-door policy.

“My door is open. I want to be available and let students know their welfare is paramount,” he said.

Students might find him at a local cafe with his laptop, he said.

This desire for transparency extends to the media. Prof Murdoch said he enjoyed his relationship with journalists and accepted scrutiny.

“I am a willing participant in journalism.

"In 2020 alone, I gave 500 interviews,” he said.

In his limited spare time, Prof Murdoch is a luthier. The guitars and ukuleles he creates from scratch he usually gives away when finished.

“They’re all over: Iceland, Kenya, the USA,” he said.

Prof Murdoch will continue in his research at the University of Otago, which, broadly speaking, is in the fields of infectious diseases and epidemiology. However, while he thought it was critical to stay involved in research, he saw himself chiefly as a guide to others now.

“I see myself as a mentor, as someone who creates a space for younger researchers,” he said.

“I’d like to give back.”

eric.trump@odt.co.nz