MIL OSI – Source: Waikato District Health Board – Press Release/Statement
Headline: Community feedback welcomed for strategy refresh
Is Waikato District Health Board still meeting the health needs of the people in its District?
The current Waikato DHB strategic plan dates back ten years and the Board has approved a refresh of this strategy to ensure the organisation is heading in the right direction, focusing its resources and making the most of future opportunities.
Following engagement the Iwi Māori Council, the Board and its executive group, a draft strategy has been developed to take out to the community for their feedback.
Under a vision of ‘Building New Zealand’s Healthiest Communities’ the draft strategy has six key strategic imperatives:
Achieving health equity for high needs populations
Ensuring quality health services for all
Providing people centred services
Delivering effective and efficient care and services
Becoming a centre of excellence in teaching, training and research
Developing productive partnerships
Below these sit a number of priorities to help achieve these imperatives.
The draft strategy aligns with the New Zealand Health Strategy and is informed by international trends, Statistics NZ data, and analysis of the Waikato population.
Waikato DHB chair Bob Simcock said: “Our current strategy dates back to 2006 and a lot has changed since then. We are facing increasing health demands from an aging population and large numbers of patients with long-term conditions like diabetes. It’s really important that we prioritise the competing demands on our resources so we can meet these huge healthcare challenges.
“New technology is bringing new opportunities and we want to make sure we are in a position to make the most of these and really make a difference to the health of our community.”
The draft strategy is now on the DHB’s website and feedback is sought from the public from 1 March until 15 April. There will be workshops, an online survey and an email address for people to express their views.
Waikato DHB has a specific remit to plan, fund and provide health and disability services for the people who live in the district. It also has to promote, protect and improve its population’s health and wellbeing. Any feedback needs to relate to these core responsibilities.
Mr Simcock said: “We really value the input from our community into the direction our organisation is heading, so I would encourage everyone to have a look at our draft strategy and let us know if we are on the right track. We are particularly interested in your views on the priorities under the six strategic imperatives.”
There are a number of ways to give your feedback.
This information and other updates about the engagement and feedback is also on our Waikato DHB website About us/Engaging with our communities section.
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