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Jonathan Cameron / Stuff
The new president of the Southern District Health Board, Pete Hodgson, wants to make sure that health services are equitably distributed throughout the district. (File photo)
Incoming Chairman of the Southern District Health Board, Pete Hodgson, says he wants to move away from a Dunedin-centric approach to secondary care.
Hodgson, a former health minister and president of the Southern Partnership Group, was appointed to replace Dave Cull, who resigned in October after he was diagnosed with a tumor in his pancreas.
He also acknowledged that the health board was dealing with various clinical safety issues, such as access to colonoscopies, and said it was the board’s job to keep a close watch and make sure they were not repeated.
“We need to make sure we see an improvement,” he said.
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He believed that the new Dunedin Hospital, where he had been working with the Southern Partnership Group in recent years, would be a catalyst for positive change in Southland and Otago.
“For example, we will see more emphasis on the global movement toward general hospital care, more emphasis on primary and community health care, and more emphasis on valuing patient time,” Hodgson said, eventually resulting in patients spend less time in hospital.
However, he noted that Southland Hospital was ahead of the curve, already employing a generalist approach, meaning looking at all aspects of a patient’s body and life rather than a specific organ or health problem.
Historically, Hodgson had supported moving services from hospitals to mainstream practices and hoped to place greater emphasis on Southern DHB’s Community and Primary Health Strategy.
This would ease the pressure on hospitals, he said.
Hamish McNeilly / Stuff
Pete Hodgson, right, already knows well the leaders of the Southern District Board of Health, such as CEO Chris Fleming, left, and medical director, Dr. Nigel Millar, who have worked together on the construction of Dunedin Hospital. (File photo)
He envisions a world in which patients can receive a diagnosis from their GP or book an appointment with a specialist in their doctor’s office.
But these changes depended on a digitized healthcare system, Hodgson said.
A lot of time and money had been invested in setting up the technology to be used at the new Dunedin Hospital, and he believed this would enforce a digital approach across the district.
“As the years go by, we can see the benefits,” he said.
As a longtime MP and chairman of the Labor Party or Southern Partnership Group, among other positions, Hodgson has worked with every member of his board before.
He had known some “for decades” and was looking forward to working with them again, along with the “thousands of committed healthcare workers in the Otago and Southland healthcare sector.”
It was a particular privilege to follow in Dave Cull’s footsteps, Hodgson said.
Assumes his new position as president of the board from January 1.
