Our history

IDFNZ and the Kids Foundation were founded in the late 1980s by a group of concerned parents, and today they care for hundreds of families coping with chronic illness. IDFNZ is governed by an Executive Board. Two specialist subcommittees (medical and scientific) also advise and assist the Board.

IDFNZ is fully registered with the New Zealand Charities Commission as New Zealand Charity CC24570. Dedicated to provide New Zealand families struggling with chronic illness relating to Primary Immune Deficiency (PID); IDFNZ was first incorporated in 1989 and is proud to have served this section of the New Zealand special needs community for over 28 years. There are over a Hundred individual PID conditions, some of the better known are: Severe Combined Immune Deficiency, Common Variable Immune Deficiency, IgA deficiency, IgG subclass deficiency, Transient hypogammaglobulinaemia, Chronic Granulatous Disease, Complement deficiencies, Hyper IgE syndrome,Di George Syndrome.Plus - plus many other related immune complex conditions.

The patients affected by these conditions face ongoing health crisis due to repeated, long lasting infections, which may be life threatening. Long term organ damage as a result of infection can lead to other health complications. Treatment may involve repeated hospitalization, ongoing antibiotics, plasma (immunoglobulin) transfusions, bone marrow transplantation etc. Ongoing health issues can adversely affect a patients education, social and financial status, as well as impacting on the whole family.

The KIDS Foundation is our youth section of the Foundation, specifically supporting New Zealand's chronically ill children affected by PID conditions (including PID bone marrow transplant and plasma IVIG/ SCIG recipient patients). In addition, KIDS Foundation also supports chronically ill liver transplant, gastro and bowel transplant children facing secondary immune problems. KIDS Foundation works closely with a wide network of community groups supporting chronically sick children facing ongoing health issues, with the aim of improving quality of life for child patients and siblings. Membership of IDFNZ and KIDS Foundation is FREE as we recognize that the price to be eligible to join as patient members is high enough.

IDFNZ is a member of IPOPI (the International Patient Organization for Primary Immune Deficiencies), and a founder member of IDFAPA (Immune Deficiencies Foundation Asia Pacific Alliance).