Health veteran seeks to continue board role

CANDIDATE: Judith MacDonald is standing for re-election to Whanganui District Health Board.

Since starting as a nurse at Taihape Hospital aged 21, Judith MacDonald says she has been focused on the health of rural communities - and especially children and older people.

She's seeking a third term elected to Whanganui District Health Board, to continue influencing health policy at a high level.

After being promoted to charge nurse and manager at Taihape, Mrs MacDonald was called to Whanganui Hospital for more management roles. For the last 13 years she's been chief executive of region's primary health organisation, the Whanganui Regional Health Network.

She also has a string of directorships and chairmanships in health-related fields - Whanganui Accident & Medical, Gonville Health, Taihape Health, the Whanganui Children's Team, a Whanganui pensioner housing committee and the region's cancer network.

Involvement in all facets of health gives her a good background for the health board role, she said.

"It offers an opportunity for me to come from an informed position and really understand the challenges of delivering health care for our region, at the front line. Living in Whanganui we are never far from the front line."

Health is a complex field, with lots of change and influence from government policy. Health board members get to make decisions on local delivery and monitor the quality of services.

One of the hardest things is balancing resources between the services provided in hospitals and the preventative ones provided in the community.

"For a community of our size it's probably one of the biggest issues that we have. It relies on relationships and trust and working with each other," Mrs MacDonald said.