Southern DHB announces new Clinical Leadership Group chairs

The group of health professionals guiding the clinical direction of the New Dunedin Hospital has two new faces at the helm from today.
 
Outgoing Clinical Leadership Group chair Dr David Perez has been replaced by a two-person team with the introduction of a deputy chair role.
 
Dr John Adams, Associate Dean of Student Affairs at Otago Medical School, is the new chair and Dr Carol Atmore, a Dunedin general practitioner and health services researcher, the deputy chair.
 
Southern DHB chief executive Chris Fleming said he was delighted to welcome Dr Adams and Dr Atmore to their new roles.
 
“It’s not easy finding people with the necessary mix of skill, clinical expertise and experience to lead such an important group as the CLG.
 
“There is a huge amount of work ahead to progress the new hospital and the CLG will play a vital role in setting the clinical direction and making sure it aligns with the wider changes happening across the Southern health system.”
 
Established in September 2016, the CLG provides advice and recommendations to Southern DHB and the Southern Partnership Group. It has produced papers on topics including the digital hospital, generalism and the future of elderly care.

Dr Adams, a psychiatrist who studied medicine in Dunedin, says he is excited by the task ahead and the chance to work with Dr Atmore.
 
“Following in David’s shoes will be a big task. He and the CLG have done a tremendous amount. They are clearly a very skilled and experienced group.
 
“I’m really excited about the possibility of contributing to a once in a generation opportunity. Spending this amount of money we need to make sure we’re doing it in the right sort of way and that clinicians’ voices are heard.
 
“Carol brings a wealth of experience and knowledge, so working with her will be a great pleasure.”
 
Dr Atmore, who has experience in hospital rebuilds and health system redesign, is the current chair of the Alliance Leadership Team of Alliance South which is overseeing the implementation of the Primary and Community Care Strategy in the Southern health system.
 
Her appointment links the work of Alliance South and the Clinical Leadership Group, helping bolster the strategic focus on aligning the new hospital with the wider southern health system.
 
“The success of the New Dunedin Hospital is closely linked to the successful implementation of the Primary and Community Care Strategy so I am pleased to be in a position to contribute to both.”

Dr Adams is a psychiatrist whose current major role is as Associate Dean of Student Affairs for the Otago Medical School and Dunedin School of Medicine. In this role, Dr Adams is responsible, in conjunction with the Student Affairs Office, for the pastoral support of all medical students on the Dunedin Campus. He was an Adult Community Psychiatry clinician with the Southern DHB Community Mental Health Team.
 
Within the University he also chairs the University’s Healthy University Advisory Group, and continues a role chairing the Board of Studies for the new Bachelor of Health Sciences degree that was introduced this year, having convened the group putting this degree in place over the last four years.
 
Dr Adams studied medicine in Dunedin, and was a House Surgeon and Psychiatric Registrar with the Otago Hospital Board in Dunedin. He joined the University in 2003 as the Dean of the Dunedin School of Medicine, a role he continued in for 10 years before moving to his current position.
 
Prior to his role as Dean, Dr Adams had been Medical Director at the Ashburn Clinic. He also has past professional roles as Chair of the New Zealand Medical Association and from 2010 to 2014, Chair of the Medical Council of New Zealand.