Mater health services to have single board under restructure

THE owner of Mater health services has announced a project to create a single board of governance for its hospitals and services in Queensland, including at Townsville.

Under the new structure, Mater’s health services in southeast Queensland, North Queensland and central Queensland will be governed by a single board.

A former CEO of Catholic Health Australia, Francis Sullivan, has been appointed foundational executive chair to oversee the transition, before becoming the inaugural chair of the new board by December 2019.

Mercy Partners chair Ricki Jeffery said Mr Sullivan came with a deep understanding of Catholic ministry and the importance of maintaining the Mercy mission of accessible health and aged care of the highest quality for the people of Queensland.

Mr Sullivan recently completed five years as CEO of the Truth, Justice and Healing Council.

Before that, he was secretary-general of the Australian Medical Association following 14 years as CEO of Catholic Health Australia.

Mr Sullivan said he looked forward to working closely with Mater health services across Queensland to further develop the range and quality of healthcare services.

“Mater health services are renowned for excellence, and by moving towards one model of governance we want to empower and encourage Mater people to share knowledge, resources and services that will only improve opportunities for patients and staff,” Mr Sullivan said.

Ms Jeffery said ensuring regional Queenslanders benefited from accessible world-class medicine and care was also a priority.

“Mater is part of the mission to continue the legacy of Catholic healthcare in this state that was established by the Sisters of Mercy over 100 years ago,” Ms Jeffery said.

Mater Health Services North Queensland chair Pat Brady said the change had the full support of his board, which was also ensuring the regionality and services provided to North Queensland were protected and maintained.

“With the continual pressures on the private hospital system in general, it doesn’t make sense to continue as three separate entities,” he said.