AMA follows Guild with new leader

FORMER Catholic Health Australia CEOs are the flavour of the month, with the Australian Medical Association (AMA) announcing the appointment of Dr Martin Laverty as its new Secretary General.

The move comes days after the Pharmacy Guild of Australia named out-going Catholic Health CEO, Suzanne Greenwood, as David Quilty’s successor as Guild Executive Director (PD 24 Jun).

Like Greenwood, Laverty has a legal background, and extensive experience in health policy and advocacy.

He is currently the CEO of the Royal Australian Flying Doctors, and is a Federal Government appointed Director of the National Disability Insurance Authority and the Australian Charities and Notfor-Profits Commission Advisory Board.

Laverty said he was looking forward to working with the profession to respond to the challenges facing the nation’s health system.

“The nation’s hospitals are strained. Private health is at the crossroads. And health prevention is inadequately funded,” he said

“These are some of the policy issues I’ve worked on for the last decade. “International experience shows that the role of general practice has expanded and excelled, particularly in coordinating chronic illness, achieving better health outcomes, and creating greater productivity, efficiencies, and value for governments with stressed health budgets.

“The AMA has critically been driving recent Departmental policy focus on general practice, recognising that it is a solution to many of our health challenges.

“Promoting organisational capability and ensuring appropriate resourcing will remain crucial in the AMA retaining its strategic leadership in health advocacy.”