Health NZ reset takes a step forward with the appointment of regional Deputy Chief Executives

SECTOR UPDATE - Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora

Following its announcement of a major reset, Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora has appointed four highly experienced health leaders to the roles of regional Deputy Chief Executives.

“One of the main objectives of our reset was to empower regions and bring decision making closer to the communities where care is being provided.  Health NZ will achieve that by establishing regional leadership that has the required level of autonomy to arrange their resources to deliver National Health Targets and health services more broadly for their populations,” says Chief Executive Margie Apa.

The new Deputy Chief Executives will hold budgets and accountability for their regional hospital services and the health services we fund others to provide. This is so they can join up care across community and hospital services. 

“What health services are delivered in each region, how and where they are delivered and by whom will be informed by clinical leadership and be responsive to local and regional stakeholder input and feedback,” says Ms Apa.

“In appointing to these roles, I was looking for people with leadership experience in health service delivery, who could integrate a financial and non-financial picture of operations and engage clinical and people leadership through change. They also needed a strong commitment to improving the experience of patients, whānau and communities,” Ms Apa said.

“I look forward to working with these new Deputy Chief Executives and supporting our teams to deliver the kind of health outcomes I know we all want for New Zealanders.”

Key performance indicators include a significant uplift in achieving National Health Targets, including Mental Health Targets, and getting expenditure back to budget.

“These appointments represent a welcome next step in our efforts to reset Health NZ. They’ll move us closer towards ensuring New Zealanders get the healthcare they need in the shortest time possible, enabling the delivery of much more healthcare within the resources we have, and making sure every contact New Zealanders have with our services is compassionate,” says Health NZ Commissioner Lester Levy.

The four new Deputy Chief Executives and their respective regions are:
• Mark Shepherd – Northern | Te Tai Tokerau
• Catherine Cronin – Midland | Te Manawa Taki
• Robyn Shearer – Central | Ikaroa
• Martin Keogh – South Island | Te Waipounamu

The new regional Deputy Chief Executives will begin in their roles progressively from 19 August to 16 September 2024.

Source: Health New Zealand Nurses - Te Whatu Ora media release

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