History
The origins of public health professional groups in New Zealand can be traced back to the New Zealand College of Community Medicine (NZCCM). The NZCCM represented a number of public health professionals, not exclusively public health physicians, and was the first training provider for public health medicine in New Zealand.
Between 1992 and mid-2008, the specialty of public health medicine was represented in New Zealand by the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine (AFPHM), a faculty of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP).
In 1999, the New Zealand Population Health Charitable Trust (NZPHCT) was established as a legal entity. The purpose of the NZPHCT was to administer and provide vocational training and professional development programmes in public health medicine for New Zealand, and was supported through the transfer of resources from the disestablished NZCCM.
The New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine (NZCPHM) was established in 2008 to represent the specialty of public health medicine in New Zealand. The NZPHCT retained responsibility for delivering the vocational training and professional development programmes, with the NZCPHM providing public health medicine leadership, advocacy and member support. In November 2010 the decision was made by the NZCPHM Council and the NZPHCT Board to dissolve the NZPHCT and incorporate its functions into the NZCPHM. In December 2011 this process was completed and the NZPHCT dissolved.
