Update from the commissioners

This month we started our Community and Public Health Advisory Committee (incorporating the Disability Support Advisory Committee) and the Hospital Advisory Committee meetings with our external appointees who bring a broad range of skills, experience and qualities.

Dr. Karen Poutasi, Waikato DHB Commissioner

The roles of these committees are to consider and advise our DHB on health status, health priorities and the health needs of the Waikato people. The Hospital Advisory Committee advises on how our hospital services are performing for the community we serve. Both these meetings are held back to back as there is common membership across both committees which will now ensure coherence across the landscape of health. Both also reflect legislation with a priority on equity and improving Māori health and wellbeing outcomes.

The DHB and commissioners are very grateful for the time and commitment of our external appointees as we can’t work effectively without the voices of those for whom we provide services.

Our services need to focus on the needs of the individual and their whānau and how we facilitate their access. Seamless pathways of care are essential and we need to look outwards and then inwards in how we will do this. To do that we need the voice of the Waikato community.

These committee meetings will be held every two months and are open to the public.

How we are shaping up

Waikato DHB now has a strong leadership team with Dr Snee having been in the role as CE for a few months, along with the commissioners who have been in place since May, and will remain until the next health board elections in 2022.

We have framed up what is critically important to us: access in all ways to our services, patients feeling culturally safe, services that reflect our focus on the task to deliver on our Treaty obligations and equity of health outcomes.

Quality of care continues to be a focus for us and the DHB has to live within the public dollars that are allocated to us.

Along with the savings plan there is a transformation programme of work underway to help us deliver quality sustainable services into the future.

We want to work more closely and partner with other community health providers and whānau, so people can have care closer to their home where possible.

Annual Report

The Waikato DHB Annual Report for the financial year ending 30 June 2019 is now complete and was submitted to the Ministry on 31 October.

We would like to thank all those who contributed and we appreciate the time and effort put into the report. Even more importantly, we appreciate the year’s work of service delivery.

The report also draws a line under our deficit and reminds us of our service plans and budgets for the new financial year we are now well into.

Response to Heather Simpson’s Health and Disability System Review – Interim Report Waikato DHB has responded to the Disability System Review – Interim Report.

There were no surprises and we thought it provided an insightful analysis of the health system issues and posed a series of pertinent questions. It rightly identifies the problems of complexity in terms of accountability, funding and organisation.

We agree that the health system has failed to deliver on improving the health of Māori, addressing equity and Treaty of Waitangi obligations.

We support a greater role for primary and community care and a stronger focus on prevention and promotion.

We advised that emphasis should also be placed on addressing the needs of our rural and often deprived communities.

We look forward with interest to the final report due with the Minister by the end of March 2020.

Dr Karen Poutasi Waikato DHB Commissioner