Leading psychiatrist at helm

Lakes District Health Board has lured top psychiatrist David Chaplow to work locally. Photo / Ben Fraser

Chaplow joins Lakes DHB

One of the country's most prominent psychiatrists has taken the helm of Rotorua's mental health unit - a move which has lured him out of retirement.

Forensic psychiatrist David Chaplow is the new clinical director of the mental health and addiction services at the Lakes District Health Board.

Dr Chaplow, who had held top positions with the Ministry of Health and helped to set up Auckland's Mason Clinic, came out of a planned retirement in Tauranga to take up the role, which he sees as an exciting challenge.

He described his goal as helping assist the mental health services to regain some stability, as well as putting in place succession planning. His passion for mental health and psychiatry came early on in his career, while working in Whakatane as a general practitioner and getting the opportunity to work in the stand-alone mental health hospital there.

From there he was "sufficiently enamoured" with the profession to train further in forensic psychiatry overseas before returning to New Zealand to set up the regional forensic services in Auckland and the Mason Clinic before becoming the country's director of mental health, as well as the Government's chief advisor on the subject. "I think mental health is about life. There is a polar spectrum - on one hand there is mental health, the other mental illness."

He said while there was obviously a strong scientific element, the field had so much to do with life and virtually no family was removed from the spectrum. In his few months at the health board so far Dr Chaplow said he had been "pretty impressed" with the services offered. Dr Chaplow said he believed one of the biggest issues facing the service in the Lakes area was around attracting staff - but said that was an issue across all health boards and not unique to Lakes.

Lakes District Health Board general manager clinical services Dale Oliff said they were "very pleased" to have Dr Chaplow on board. "[He] brings an excellent track record of the strategic and systems development of mental health services to Lakes District Health Board. Of note is his knowledge, and leadership to both the medical staff and services in general."

She said he was well-versed in the legislative requirements under the Mental Health Act and his contribution with service development was significant.