Venkat Raman
Auckland, August 29, 2024
Those involved in community service and social welfare projects will hear the name of Ranjna Patel mentioned at least once during discussions.
From the Advisory Board of the Police Commissioner and Gandhi Nivas, which she established with the support of a few of us in 2014 to Tamaki Health and several other establishments and associations, her involvement is complete and valuable. As the champion of many social causes, she epitomises the empowerment of women and has in many ways promoted it among the various layers of society.
Please follow her interview in the accompanying Video and Podcast.
The early years
Born and raised in Auckland, Ms Patel has come a long way from the environment of a fruit and vegetable shop which her grandfather established in the early 1920s in Herne Bay (Auckland) after stings in Pukekohe and Wellington. Her parents went back and forth between and New Zealand but she grew up in a joint family of eleven people.
She said that she was only eight years old when she first met Dr Kanti Patel, but it was ten years later that she married him and began life’s journey of mutual respect and community service.
In 1977, she established East Tamaki Healthcare (ETHC) with Dr Kanti.
It was a modest, solo GP practice in the South Auckland suburb of Otara with Ms Patel doubling as the Receptionist and Administrator while Dr Patel tended to the patients. Over the years, the practice grew to become the largest primary healthcare provider in Auckland with 50 clinics, accounting for more than 300,000 patients. For more than four decades, she held various executive roles involving medical practice development, strategic development and public relations. The company has been renamed Tamaki Health under new ownership and management.
A Source of Strength
There is a certain self-confidence and competence in Ms Patel that enabled her to be the strongest pillar of support to Dr Kanti.
“She has always been a source of strength and support since we were married. Both of us share a concern for serving the community, which I believe gives us a sense of purpose in life and career,” he told us during our interview, ahead of the conversation with Ms Patel.
Mrs Patel returned the compliment, saying, “I have always had confidence in what he does, and our mutual trust and understanding have seen us through all these years.”
Ms Patel is a source of inspiration and emulation, however formidable the latter may be, for, they have fostered a family that goes beyond their two sons, a daughter and grandchildren.
She attributes the success that she has achieved in various pursuits to her 92-year-old mother and her vision in life.
“Although she managed a modest fruit and vegetable shop, my other had the entrepreneurial way of doing things from a very early stage. We learnt the sense of responsibility and the essence of customer service from her. And living together with cousins taught me how to respect other’s views and contribute towards the common good,” Ms Patel said.
Meaningful engagements
When she was appointed to the Board of Bank of Baroda (NZ) Limited as an Independent Director in January 2013, we quoted then Chairman of the Bank Dr Rajen Prasad as saying that Ms Patel had brought a wealth of knowledge about the country as a third-generation New Zealander and the interests of the business and Indian communities to the Bank.
“I am particularly pleased to welcome Ranjna to the Board because of the respect she commands in the business and Indian communities. I am certain that she will strengthen the Board and serve our target market admirably,” he said.
The secret of success in the ventures with which Ms Patel is involved stems from her ability to inspire people. In early 2014, when the members of the Counties Manukau Police South Asian Advisory Board were considering establishing an initiative to help male perpetrators of family violence return home as reformed men, Ms Patel decided to pursue and complete a course on family violence to understand the problem and seek solutions.
Ten years on, Gandhi Nivas is today a recognised entity with an increasing number of stakeholders. Its three Safe Houses in Auckland give hope to families and save them from breaking down. As its Chairman, Ms Patel has been instrumental in obtaining funding and creating working relationships with the Police, Certified Counsellors and many others.
In naming her as the Best Businesswoman of the Year in 2011, the Panel of Independent Judges of the Indian Newslink Business Awards said that her contribution as a Co-Founder of ETHC is outstanding in a business that has blossomed from a GP operation to a full-scale public health organisation, unmatched in Auckland.
“Her skills have been applied across the board and it is hard to find any area, in addition to actual medical practice, that has not escaped her attention or application,” the Judges said.
The New Zealand Business Hall of Fame
Ms Patel will be officially inducted into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Auckland on September 11, 2024. She is the first person of Indian origin in the country to achieve this feat.
The Citation on her appointment described her as ‘a distinguished entrepreneur and philanthropist,’ and that ‘her leadership in healthcare and social welfare has made her a pivotal figure in fostering community wellbeing and equity.’
She was also the first person of Indian origin (in 2014) to decorate the Hall of Fame of ‘Co. of Women,’ an organisation of high achievers based in Auckland.
Her various engagements have included the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Women, Lottery Auckland Distribution Committee (as a Member), Counties Manukau Police South Asian Advisory Board, Manukau Indian Association (First Woman President) Bank of Baroda (New Zealand) Limited (Director), MIT Indian Community Advisory Group, NZ Global Women, Women’s Presidents Organisation, NZ Asian Leadership Group and the Police Commissioner’s Ethnic Focus Forum (Member).
The Swaminarayan Complex
The late Queen Elizabeth II acknowledged Ms Patel for her contributions to the communities with a Queen’s Service Medal (along with Dr Kanti Patel) in 2009 and appointed her as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2017.
Ms Patel and Dr Kanti constructed the Swaminarayan Temple (ISSO) in response to the growing needs of the community in the South Auckland suburb of Papatoetoe. It was inaugurated on March 18, 2008 (Indian Newslink March 1, and April 1, 2008). A multipurpose, multimillion Dollar Community Complex with a state-of-the-art facility was added last year (2023). The facility has become an important landmark in Auckland as a venue for public festivals, events, weddings and other functions.
