No place in reasoned debate for personal attacks

Public office, or even just being in the public eye, can at times be quite challenging. Politicians, be they at national or local level, CEOs, team coaches or captains all know that public scrutiny goes with the territory. And that is how it should be - it helps keep them honest and often there is benefit to be gleaned from people equally as competent and wise as those subjected to scrutiny.

So it is, as both a District Councillor and a DHB member, I relish reading the comments, criticism and advice offered through the columns of Wanganui's leading morning daily. Much of it is well considered and sound and is very helpful to me as I try to serve our community to the best of my ability. But to win my respect and endorsement any such comments must be constructive and steer well clear of personal denigration which at times borders on vilification. And on both counts the latest commentary by Jay Kuten (Chronicle, Oct 17) falls well short of those two criteria.

I have met Mr Kuten on a couple of occasions and our discussions have been amicable but I found his observations in that article to be not only unworthy of someone of his undoubted education but in fact offensive due to inaccuracy and personal denigration of someone unable to defend herself.

I do endorse his lampooning of mortality (death) statistics for they tend to ignore variables of demographics and the age of a community. Such academic analysis is best left where it belongs - on the computers of the statistics geeks.

But then Mr Kuten falls into the same trap by starting to compare mortality rates of 1.48per cent, 1.77 per cent and 1.78 per cent. He correctly comments: "Confused enough yet?"

Now I may be just a simple country boy but I always thought that in any population the death rate was one per person. And that eventually every one of us will achieve that perfect score.

Sadly, and to his everlasting discredit, Mr Kuten uses these fairly meaningless figures to vent his spleen on our hospital's CEO, Mrs Julie Patterson. Worse, he then uses false allegations to support his attack on her. Let's look at these:

First he says she is "chosen by central government to lead the hospital in directions prescribed by Wellington". Not true and I am sure he knows it is not true.

Board members themselves unanimously chose Julie Patterson from a significant field of high calibre applicants. But of course we must never let the truth get in the way of a bit of sensation!

He then turns to maligning our CEO for actually delegating some of the tasks at the hospital. In all my training I learn that the ability to delegate is one of the most important skills required in leadership. But then I suppose if the coffee in the hospital cafeteria was not to Mr Kuten's liking he would abuse the CEO for not having personally ground the coffee beans.

As for his carping comments about the CEO not living in Wanganui (always a good card to play) I am sure that he is aware that Julie Patterson and her husband are ratepayers in Wanganui. And I am equally sure he knows full well that she spends all her working - and waking - hours serving the health needs of the people of Wanganui.

After all, before being chosen as our CEO she did all her nursing training (four years) here, graduating from the Wanganui Hospital School of Nursing.

After furthering her experience elsewhere she returned as our Hospital's Matron/Principal Nurse for a period of seven years.

I would venture to suggest that Julie has spent more years working in Wanganui Hospital than Mr Kuten has lived in New Zealand.

So when he claims, "Once more I am obliged to do the work that Julie Patterson should be doing" I'm afraid his delusion knows no bounds. Destructive criticism based on false assertions has no place in the running of our health service. I came on to our DHB five years ago because I was sick and tired of the destructive and personal attacks made on the character and integrity of those faithfully serving the health needs of our community.

DHB work is complex and demanding - certainly not for the faint-hearted - and I am proud to be involved. That pride is made all the more so by my appreciation of, and respect for, all who work in health, be it as doctors, nurses, managers, cleaners or whatever.

Wanganui has a superb hospital. It can do without the personal denigration and false accusations such as those currently being made by Mr Kuten and others. Allan Anderson is in his second term as both a District Councillor and a DHB member, is a JP and in 2009 was awarded the Queen's Service Medal for services to conservation and the community.