Richard Bush was born in Gisborne, oldest of three children (Spencer and Juliet) where his father, John Turnbull Thomson Bush was a sheep farmer. His great grandfather, John Turnbull Thomson had been the Surveyor General for New Zealand (1876 to 1879). His mother, Marjorie Reka nee Hookey, was the daughter of a draper, Alfred Tiley Hookey. He died suddenly at his home in Lower Hutt in February, 2011.

In 1952 Richard married Lois Alison Atmore whose father, Charles Frederick Atmore was a Barrister and Solicitor in Otaki. Her mother, Emma Gertrude, nee Applegate, was also a doctor and was the 24th female graduate in medicine from the Otago Medical School. Lois and Richard met in Dunedin where she was training in Dietetics.

They have 3 sons and 2 daughters. Tony, Robyn, Christopher, Benjamin, Amanda and 15 grandchildren.

Richard was educated at King’s College, Auckland before going on to the Otago University Medical School in Dunedin. He spent his final undergraduate year at Wellington Hospital before gaining his MB ChB in 1952. After the next two years at Wellington Hospital as a House Surgeon, he spent a year in General Practice in Otaki (1955). He then traveled to London to pursue postgraduate training and worked as an SHO at North Middlesex Hospital in London (1956) and then at the Edgeware General Hospital, first as a House Physician and then as Paediatric Registrar (1956 to 1957). During this period he gained, firstly the DCH and then the London MRCP and was in a position to return to New Zealand.

His first appointment in the Wellington region was at the Hutt Hospital as a Senior Medical Registrar (1958 to 1959) before becoming one of two visiting paediatricians at that hospital in 1960. In 1967 he transferred to the paediatric service at Wellington Hospital as a visiting paediatrician and also took up an appointment as paediatrician at the Karitane Hospital which was run by the Plunket Organisation which was responsible for supervising mothers and young infants.

In 1973, he was awarded the Wolfson Travelling Fellowship which he used to study developmental paediatrics and the facilities and systems for the care of handicapped children. This took him back to the UK as well as to Europe and North America.

After his return he was commissioned to set up a suitable service for these children in the Wellington region and accordingly, established the Puketiro Centre and became its first Medical Director in 1975.

In 1985, he took over as Medical Superintendent of the Hutt Hospital, a post he held for four years. With the introduction of the Area Health Board system, he continued on as Deputy District Manager for the Hutt District of the Wellington Area Health Board. In 1992 he became the Chief Medical Advisor for the whole Wellington AHB.

With the further change in health governance structures to Crown health Enterprises in 1993 and a more ‘commercial’ approach, he was appointed as a Company Director to both the Capital and Coast (Wellington) CHE until 1999 and Lakeland Health (Rotorua) CHE until 1997. In 1999, he retired formally from the health service and its administration, although he continued to take a keen interest in it.

Richard was the archetypal generalist with a keen interest in all aspects of paediatrics. This led him to an active concern for the needs of families with chronically handicapped children and a sympathetic understanding of their challenges and difficulties. As a consequence he spent much effort developing an overall plan for their care throughout the whole of the Wellington region, with the eventual establishment of a specialized unit at Puketiro. Some of his plans for the wider region did not eventuate but that was not through lack of enthusiasm and support on his part.

When he changed his role to that of medical administrator, firstly at Hutt Hospital and later in other regions, he was always aware of the clinical needs of the services and, although mindful of the costs, did not let those issues become the ruling factor in his decisions.

Throughout his clinical career, Richard was an active member of the Paediatric Society of New Zealand and was its President for a two year period from 1976. He was granted the Wolfson Travelling Fellowship in 1973 to pursue his interest in developmental paediatrics and the care of these children.

Throughout his life, interest and involvement with his family has always been paramount and the stories they tell of family activities together are many, with camping, skiing and fishing featuring prominently. As well as that, he found time for other passions such as golf and contract bridge and in later years was involved in the local Rotary Club and in St James’ Anglican Church. In his retirement he enjoyed time for reading, genealogy and local projects such as the Lower Hutt flood protection scheme.