Dr Corina Grey lands Director of Public Health role

Dr Corina Grey has been appointed as the new Director of Public Health.

Grey's appointment comes after the sudden resignation of Dr Nicholas Jones in February.

Jones' resignation came amid a flurry of change in the health sector, along with the departures of HealthNZ chief executive Fepulea'i Margie Apa and the Director-General of Health Dr Diana Sarfati.

Grey will start in the role on 5 May.

The Director of Public Health is a statutory role providing public health leadership across the Public Health Agency, within the Ministry of Health, and the National Public Health Service within Health NZ.

Grey is currently the chair of the National Verification Committee for the Elimination of Measles and Rubella, as well as a member of the National Mortality Review Committee, the Public Health Research Committee at the Health Research Council, the NZ Committee of the Cardiac Society of Australia and NZ, and the steering committee of the Public Health Observatory of New Zealand.

She has previously worked at the Ministry of Health as chief clinical advisor of Pacific Health, and worked on case management and contact tracing during the Covid-19 response, as well as standing up vaccination centres.

She has most recently served as deputy secretary of policy and insights at the Ministry of Pacific Peoples.

Public Health Agency deputy Director-General Dr Andrew Old said Grey has an extensive career working in research, epidemiology and public health.

He said her experience at the Ministry of Pacific Peoples, and prior to that in a range of clinical and public health roles, including strategy and policy, funding and planning, and academia, would be an invaluable contribution to her new role.

The HealthNZ chief executive and Director-General of Health roles are still being managed by interim and acting figures.