1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:01,840 Speaker 1: And so the latest development on the health front is 2 00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:04,960 Speaker 1: the appointment of four regional CEOs basically will have specific 3 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:08,160 Speaker 1: operations in Northern Midland, Central and the South Island. Motors 4 00:00:08,200 --> 00:00:10,800 Speaker 1: apparandi doesn't change, slim it down, move the middle management 5 00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:13,640 Speaker 1: out and save money. Health commentator empals with us Ean, 6 00:00:13,720 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: good morning to you, Good morning twenty three DHBs clearly 7 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:20,159 Speaker 1: too many one apparently doesn't work do for. 8 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 2: I think it would be wrong to see this as 9 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:27,320 Speaker 2: dhb's coming back. I think it's within the same structure, 10 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:33,159 Speaker 2: but it's an entenvor well so the rhetoric, so the 11 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:36,720 Speaker 2: language goes to devolve a level of decision making closer 12 00:00:38,080 --> 00:00:40,559 Speaker 2: more regionally, but within the same structure. So it's not 13 00:00:40,600 --> 00:00:44,599 Speaker 2: bringing back district healthports. The question is is it going 14 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:48,919 Speaker 2: to make a difference? And well, first response is far 15 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:52,239 Speaker 2: too early to tell that. I had a discussion with 16 00:00:52,320 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 2: Shane Retti not long before the last election and we 17 00:00:55,920 --> 00:01:02,560 Speaker 2: talked about, rather than restructure and completely the new Health 18 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:09,040 Speaker 2: New Zealand, that decision making be devolved within it. And 19 00:01:10,760 --> 00:01:13,440 Speaker 2: he's already been thinking about that quite seriously and he 20 00:01:13,560 --> 00:01:16,120 Speaker 2: was that's that's where he was thinking was going in 21 00:01:16,160 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 2: some respects it's the continuation of that. But there is 22 00:01:19,319 --> 00:01:22,760 Speaker 2: a real problem. Unless you change the culture, the leadership 23 00:01:22,800 --> 00:01:27,080 Speaker 2: culture of the whole organization, it's going to mean nothing because, 24 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:29,840 Speaker 2: as you know, Mike, if he just simply changes structure 25 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,360 Speaker 2: and that's all you do, you won't achieve the change 26 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:36,520 Speaker 2: that you seek, the improvements that you're seeking. In fact, 27 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:37,480 Speaker 2: it will go back. 28 00:01:37,440 --> 00:01:39,400 Speaker 1: A couple of broad Bays questions for you, given your 29 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:42,400 Speaker 1: experience in the sector, is roughly speaking, thirty billion, as 30 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:44,399 Speaker 1: the Prime mister argues, enough. In other words, there is 31 00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:46,880 Speaker 1: enough money. It's what you do with the countsl. 32 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:51,280 Speaker 2: I don't think I think that's wrong. I certainly believe 33 00:01:51,680 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 2: that we had much more of an engagement field culture, 34 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:58,880 Speaker 2: and we had more direct involvement with people who actually 35 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 2: know how to do the job of delivering health care, 36 00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:04,040 Speaker 2: then we could probably get a better return for the 37 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 2: health dollar. But in the absence of that, it is 38 00:02:08,040 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 2: and that would take a bit of time. In the 39 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:14,000 Speaker 2: absence of that, it's not enough. It's clearly per capita 40 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:20,200 Speaker 2: the spending is dropping now and it's also not keeping 41 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:22,680 Speaker 2: up with the demands on the health system, which is 42 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:25,919 Speaker 2: that we have more sick of people needing healthcare and 43 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:29,960 Speaker 2: more often and more of those people are very sick 44 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:31,080 Speaker 2: rather than simply sick. 45 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: And the other one right, The mixed message was the 46 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:36,600 Speaker 1: board was incompetent. They couldn't see a thing, They didn't 47 00:02:36,600 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 1: answer the questions they needed to go true or not. 48 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:43,120 Speaker 2: I think they're superficial, very superficial analysis. So I think 49 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 2: that the boards did struggle, but the whole organization was struggling. 50 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:48,720 Speaker 2: I think the board has been escape coated. 51 00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:51,639 Speaker 1: Can you see a fix? And I mean, god, how 52 00:02:51,639 --> 00:02:53,800 Speaker 1: many times? How many years have we been talking about 53 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:55,960 Speaker 1: the dysfunction of health in New Zealand. Do you ever 54 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:57,640 Speaker 1: see a day when you can come on and go 55 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:01,160 Speaker 1: all things being equal, it's okay. 56 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:06,880 Speaker 2: Well, I'm a firm believer that if you don't have hope, 57 00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:11,000 Speaker 2: you have nothing, and you can't have strategies to address 58 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:15,919 Speaker 2: the problem. Having said that, it is a very despairing situation. Look. 59 00:03:15,919 --> 00:03:19,240 Speaker 2: When National, sorry, the labor your dearth government came in 60 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:23,280 Speaker 2: in twenty seventeen, they inherited a mess and their contribution 61 00:03:23,480 --> 00:03:28,080 Speaker 2: was to make that mess messier. When National came in, 62 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:33,000 Speaker 2: they inherited even greater mess. And I have to say, 63 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:36,840 Speaker 2: unfortunately they are more or less doing what labor did previously. 64 00:03:36,880 --> 00:03:39,600 Speaker 2: They're making a very messy situation messier. 65 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:41,480 Speaker 1: Okay, so you and I will be talking for a 66 00:03:41,520 --> 00:03:44,000 Speaker 1: few more years yet an appreciate that very much impaled 67 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:46,920 Speaker 1: health commentator these days elone. For more from the mic 68 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:50,080 Speaker 1: Asking Breakfast, listen live to news talks it'd be from 69 00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:53,600 Speaker 1: six am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.