Rob Campbell’s Health NZ sacking an opportunity to gain better leadership says ex-DHB member

Former Health NZ chairman Rob Campbell says he should have a right to make statements in a private capacity.

By RNZ

A doctor says Health NZ should be led by someone with a healthcare background to deliver reforms, but ousted chairman Rob Campbell says his sacking may signal a lack of appetite for change.

Former member of the Hutt Valley DHB Dr Richard Stein told Morning Report there needed to be somebody with key knowledge of the healthcare system and Campbell wasn’t that person.

The gastroenterologist also criticised a lack of transparency around what Health NZ/ Te Whatu Ora and its board had been doing to address a systemic crisis in healthcare.

He said there was a disconnect between leadership and health staff, who hadn’t seen any change or vision, or an increase in staffing levels over several months.

Campbell took to LinkedIn at the weekend to criticise National’s Three Waters policy and its co-governance component, saying it was a thin disguise for dog-whistling on co-governance.

He maintains those comments were made in a private capacity, but Health Minister Ayesha Verrall decided otherwise and stripped him of his chairman role over concerns he could not be politically neutral.

Even former director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield has weighed in on the sacking of Campbell, saying Campbell’s comments were a big story because it is a very rare event.

Sir Ashley, who is now a Professor at the University of Auckland’s School of Public Health, tweeted that he spent much of the past 25 years in New Zealand’s public health service and saw no evidence of either left or right-leaning public servants.

Sir Ashley said he had no idea how any of his former chief executive colleagues voted, because they just did not talk about it.

Some in the healthcare sector believe Campbell’s department is an opportunity for more informed leadership and reform.

“Looking at Rob Campbell’s background, there’s absolutely nothing in his background that I can see that would give him an understanding of the complexities of healthcare in New Zealand,” Stein said.

He said legislation that disestablished the 20 district health boards and set up a centralised national service in July last year had initially signalled hope of positive and meaningful reform and a more equitable system.

But since Health NZ/Te Whatu Ora was launched Stein said nothing had changed and the issues seemed to be getting worse, while meetings by management over reform plans had been held privately, leaving health workers in the dark.

“I saw it as a way to consolidate or create centres of excellence, bring medical care to communities that were severely lacking in health care,” Stein said.

“But I just haven’t seen anything. I think that one of Rob Campbell’s first decisions was to hold board meetings in private and keeping out the media ... I think the people in the healthcare system really feel disconnected from leadership.”

Stein said Campbell’s lack of medical background made him less than appropriate for the role.

“Health care professionals are a different breed of workers - doctors, nurses, midwives, GPs - they were all trained to work independently. They make life and death decisions every day,” he said.

“That’s what you need - somebody with an understanding of the healthcare system in the lead role. When you look at the board of Te Whatu Ora - eight members I think there are - there are only two members of the board that actually have a background in clinical medicine.

“That’s critical, especially for the chair to have just an understanding of how things work, the issues of the frontline workers.

“We have incredible shortages, GPs are so overworked, nurses, midwives, the number of vacancies is just unbelievable.