Red X iconGreen tick iconYellow tick icon

Contact Details

Phone
+64 4 918 6802
Email
michael.baker@otago.ac.nz
Position
Professor
Department
Department of Public Health (Wellington)
Qualifications
MBChB DPH (Otago) DipObst (Auck) FAFPHM FRACMA
Research summary
Infectious disease surveillance; Health determinants

Research

Michael is a public health physician and Professor in the Department of Public Health. He is passionate about opportunities to organise society in ways that promote health, equity and sustainability.

In 2013 Michael was awarded the Liley Medal (Health Research Council) for his contribution to the health and medical sciences. In 2014 he was a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Science Prize as a member of He Kainga Oranga / Housing and Health Research Programme. In 2015 he was the NZ-UK Link Foundation Visiting Professor at the School of Advanced Study (SAS), University of London.

His work during 2020-21 has been dominated by assisting with the Covid-19 pandemic response. Michael is a member of the Ministry of Health’s Covid-19 Technical Advisory Group and has been a leading architect and advocate for the Covid-19 elimination strategy. He established a programme of research on the epidemiology, prevention and control of Covid-19 in NZ and internationally (Co-Search), which has generated a large amount of published research and commentary aimed at improving the pandemic response.

Michael’s work on public health, and the Covid-19 response in particular, was recognised by a number of recent awards including: the Critic and Conscience of Society Award (from Universities NZ), the Public Health Champion award (from the Public Health Association of NZ), being made a Member of the NZ Order of Merit (MNZM), his selection as the 2020 Wellingtonian of the Year, and the Prime Minister’s Science Communication Prize in 2021.

Michael has a wide range of public health research interests, with a focus on infectious diseases, environmental health, and improving housing conditions. Specific research areas include:

His research interests include:

  • infectious disease epidemiology
  • emerging infectious diseases
  • pandemic influenza and how it can be contained
  • food safety and enteric diseases such as campylobacteriosis
  • zoonoses and One Health
  • immunisation and vaccine preventable diseases
  • the health effects of household crowding
  • home injuries, homelessness
  • seasonality of disease, health effects of climate change
  • public health surveillance and outbreak investigation
  • the International health Regulations (IHR 2005) and global health
  • science communication

Publications

Boston, J., Baker, M., Geddis, A., Jones, C., & Palmer, G. (2025). Regulatory Standards Bill threatens the public interest, public health and Māori rights. The Briefing, (12 June). Retrieved from https://www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/regulatory-standards-bill-threatens-public-interest-public-health-and-maori-rights Journal - Research Other

Bennett, J., Salman, S., Moodley, D., Dobinson, H., Andersen, E., Anderson, A., … Baker, M., … Manning, L. (2025). High dose, subcutaneous injections of benzathine penicillin G (SCIP) to prevent rheumatic fever: A single arm, phase IIa trial of safety and pharmacokinetics. Journal of Infection. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.jinf.2025.106506 Journal - Research Article

Baker, M., Kerr, J., Hales, S., & Chapman, R. (2025). Earth Overshoot Day: Should Aotearoa New Zealand be more like Uruguay? The Briefing, (30 April). Retrieved from https://www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/earth-overshoot-day-should-aotearoa-new-zealand-be-more-uruguay Journal - Research Other

Mala, K., Baker, M. G., Stanley, J., & Bennett, J. (2025). The epidemiology of repeatedly positive bacterial skin infections in Auckland children, New Zealand. Journal of Infection, 90, 106484. doi: 10.1016/j.jinf.2025.106484 Journal - Research Article

Baker, M., Broadbent, A., Kvalsvig, A., & Wilson, N. (2025). Improving our pandemic preparedness: Counterfactuals and continuous quality improvement. The Briefing, (15 April). Retrieved from https://www.phcc.org.nz/briefing/improving-our-pandemic-preparedness-counterfactuals-and-continuous-quality-improvement Journal - Research Other

Back to top