“It is through the telling of stories that we make sense of ourselves and each other. ”
- Dr Lucy O'Hagan -
haere mai and welcome!
I am a doctor, writer, speaker, teacher and mentor, from Aotearoa New Zealand. My interest is in the curious relationship between doctors, patients and their stories.
I have worked mainly in the community in a variety of contexts from rural and urban, wealthy to impoverished, 90% Pākeha to 90% Māori/Pacifica, from those with health insurance to those who can only come because it is free.
Tēna kotou katoa. Nō Aerani ōku tīpuna.
Ka tū ahau i raro, i te maru o Tititea, i runga i te tahataha, o Mata-Au, i runga i te tai, o Hāwea.
Ko tēnei taku mihi, ki ngā tāngata whenua, o te Waipounamu, me te motu o Aotearoa.
Ko Lucy OHagan toku ingoa.
Nō reira tēna kotou, tēna kotou katoa.
read, listen, be heard
writing
I write about everything except the medicine. My stories excavate the medical encounter, uncovering how it is to be the doctor and re-seeing what happens to the patient and their story.
speaking
My presentations pierce the heart of the matter, make us sit up, laugh and wonder…and help us understand the stories doctors find themselves in.
mentoring
I am on a mission to get doctors to come out of their rooms and talking honestly. Medicine is a fantastic but challenging job… mentoring is a great antidote to isolation and overwhelm.
'Waiting for Covid'
PANDEMIC STORIES read to you
Waiting for a virus to descend upon an isolated island nation, watching the pandemic snarling at our shores.
Written during the Covid 19 pandemic these honest, funny, compelling reflections take you inside New Zealand’s pandemic story through the eyes of a General Practitioner.
Thanks to director Stuart Devenie and sound engineer Danny Fairley of Mirrors Audio. Loved working with you both.
WRITTEN AND READ BY LUCY. COMING SOON.
the book is nearly written!
My first collection of stories and essays about doctors patients and stories will be with you soon. Prepare to be moved, shaken and stirred. Be ready to laugh, cry and think again. This book will make both doctors and patients re consider the medical encounter and what it does to all our stories.
Be the first to know when the book is released, by subscribing below
What people have to say
On not being Ashley
For a feature today, a wonderful piece of writing about the heroic perception of doctors right now, from one who is out there on the front lines. Dr Lucy O’Hagan, writing on health publication Corpus, has looked at the recent deification of Dr Ashley Bloomfield, arguing that it’s not that it isn’t warranted, but that it is based on a particular set of circumstances that the writer doesn’t share.
Eric Elder memorial lecture
Lucy ‘encouraged fellow doctors to embrace other ways of seeing.’Your talk was really moving, 'real' and inspirational.
Your story inspired me to be myself, thank you.
Your talk at the RNZCGP conference was quite powerful and universal. I recognize that this is a deeply personal story, but... it was therapeutic for many people in the room.
General practice is narrative
Thank you for challenging the narratives that... we need to be less than ourselves to be 'good doctors'Thanks so much for this morning's story about stories. It strikes to the very heart of how I see the world and general practice.