Top-heavy health board structure 'dumb'

By BRIDGET CARTER

A departing district health board chief says the health system is too politically correct and wastes taxpayers' money.

Ken Whelan, the former chief executive of the Northland District Health Board, said there had been "change for the sake of change".

The 45-year-old resigned in July after four years in the job and this week moves to Queensland to run Townsville Hospital. His replacement is Karyn McPeake, from New South Wales.

Mr Whelan said Queensland was the size of New Zealand and had one health board. New Zealand was a small country and overburdened with administration.

In Auckland, where the population was close together, it was inefficient to have three health boards.



"Twenty-one district health boards, 21 sets of administrators and 21 sets of board members all doing different things is dumb."

Mr Whelan, who grew up in Thames, began his career in health during the 1970s as a psychiatric nurse and worked his way up after "being sick of being told what to do by managers".

Ian Powell, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, said Mr Whelan was fair, honest and good to work for.

"There is a depressing shortage of managerial talent in New Zealand and we can't afford to lose what limited talent we have got."

Mr Whelan said New Zealand was obsessed with being politically correct.

"That just costs a whole lot of money we can't afford."

It was important to have people with good business skills on health boards.

He blamed the problems surrounding the suspension of services at Kaitaia Hospital this year on "personalities".

Staff shortages at places such as Kaitaia Hospital could be avoided if the Government sorted out some incentives for young doctors to stay in New Zealand and used the ACC scheme as more of a drawcard.

"Doctors are getting sued all over the world, and New Zealand is seen as a place they could come and practise without the fear of being sued."

He also believed that places such as Northland, where health statistics were shocking, should have free GP visits to alleviate problems before they became worse.

Health Minister Annette King said through a spokesman that Mr Whelan had written to her saying he thought the district health board system was a good one. He had said he would like to come back to work in New Zealand.

Further reading
Feature: Our sick hospitals