District Health Board gets down to business under new chairman
Faced with increasing financial pressure, the new Hawke's Bay District Health Board met for the first time since Health Minister David Clark changed its make-up.
Former chair Kevin Atkinson wasn't in the chair’s seat he has held for more than 16 years but was instead directly opposite newly appointed chair, Shayne Walker, general manager for the Maungaharuru-Tangitu Trust and head of Māori Business at the Bank of New Zealand.
Clark's choices of the four government-appointed members garnered criticism, notably for the lack of experience, and Napier representation.
Evan Davies, the managing director of Todd Property, is now deputy chair, while Joanne Edwards and Wairoa-based regional councillor Charles Lambert were appointed members of the DHB.
The appointees join Atkinson, Peter Dunkerley, Ana Apatu, Heather Skipworth, Hayley Anderson, David Davidson and Anna Lorck who were elected at the local body elections on October 12.
Due to retire at the end of the month, Atkinson was shoulder-tapped by Health Minister David Clark asking him to re-stand on the basis he would be appointed as chair for another term.
He has been repeatedly elected as highest-polling candidate, including in the latest elections in October.
Earlier this month, he expressed his surprise and disappointment at the Minister's move.
But at today’s meeting a concerted effort to move forward was evident.
Before the scheduled agenda, Walker acknowledged Atkinson's service to the community, and labelled him as a "taonga". A karakia was said, and he was gifted with a Maori carving blessed by a Kaumātua.
Atkinson said the gift was "quite unexpected" but one he "really appreciated".
"Twenty years [on the board] has been quite a long time. There's probably only three things that are in common in this room today; myself, Cathy and the board room chairs,” he added.
But with only four returning members, and the HBDHB facing rising debt, staff pressures and long elective waiting times, the new board went straight into their December agenda.
Last month’s financial performance was a $2.3million deficit.
Executive Director Financial Services, Carriann Hall said there are three main drivers of the adverse result for the month, including a $960k crystallisation of the pharmaceutical risk highlighted over the last few months, $515k Inter District Flow (IDF) overspend in a month, due to HBDHB patients being treated in other DHBs having a particularly high caseweight complexity and recent notification of a long stay patient, and a $825k net adverse variance on normal business, against a forecast of $290k adverse, driven by personnel costs in Provider Services.
As a result, she said they have increased their full year forecast to a $20.1m deficit ($7.2m adverse to plan) from $15.9m deficit forecast last month.
