Opinion piece by Waikato DHB chairperson

Nominations open this week for the election of board members to the 20 district health boards across the country. While that news will probably not rock the nation, health is nevertheless a vital public service that regularly affects the lives of every family if not every individual. The cause is worthy and deserves the best at all levels, and that definitely includes in the boardroom.

For the country’s top directors, directing a district health board is probably not top of mind. Given that seven of the 11 board members are elected on a three yearly cycle, going through that process is not something that an in demand busy professional director is going to willingly put him, or her, self through.

Yet district health boards do deserve the best. Not only are we an outstandingly worthy cause, but we are big businesses by any measure.

Waikato DHB is by far the largest business in the Waikato. In the current year we are budgeting a turnover of $1.1 billion; we directly employ 6000 staff and through services that we fund in the community indirectly employ several thousand more; total assets on our balance sheet are in the region of $400 million and with a capital programme ahead of us of something in the order of $600 million, are set to grow dramatically.

So the business is worthy, it is large by any comparison, it is growing, and of course it is challenging. The national public health budget is almost by definition never enough. In health there are always new demands, new diagnostics and treatments, population dynamics, and the decisions around investing in prevention versus the need to treat today’s waiting lists.

Many will think that while the Waikato DHB has a board of directors, that actually they are relatively unimportant in the scheme of things as the Ministry of Health would run a standard rule over virtually every decision to ensure a standard national service provision and therefore board members would only have a relatively small span of control.

Surprisingly that is not the case and various reforms in health have devolved decision making to a very large degree to the district level. Some may argue that the process has gone too far and is starting to result in one (relatively small) country with 20 different health services. In fact the formation in the last year of the National Health Board does point to a future where the autonomy of district health boards will start to be restricted to some degree. (A good thing in my opinion.) However, presently we have large complex organisations with plenty of challenge and excitement to attract the best directors in the land.

So there remains the issue of having to stand for election and there is also the fact that as a professional director you will be remunerated at a fraction of the rates that you would expect to receive in the private sector, but then again as an experienced director you have already put yourself into a reasonably comfortable financial position, so isn’t it time to put something directly back into the community?

My comments are not to in any way to discourage those without a strong background as a director of large businesses from standing for the board. We need a mix of skills around the board table, from clinical to those that have strong community experience. All current (and I am sure) future board members are united by a driving ambition to contribute to the best health service that we can possibly achieve in the Waikato.

So if you have the skills we need, or you know somebody who does, please consider being nominated for a seat on our board at the up-coming October elections. As the current chair I am more than willing to personally discuss the role, its challenges and rewards, with potential candidates. My contact details and details on how to make yourself available for election are available on the Waikato DHB website www.waikatodhb.govt.nz

Graeme Milne is Health Minister Tony Ryall’s appointed chairman on Waikato DHB.

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