Sad farewell from proud Board Chair

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Paul Bell giving a speech at the CQ Health Staff Awards night

Central Queensland Hospital and Health Board is entering a new era, with long-serving Chair Paul Bell and Deputy Chair Dr Lisa Caffery choosing to step down from their positions to enable the opportunity for fresh ideas.

Mr Bell was first appointed to the Board in 2015 and has been Chair since May 2017.

He is immensely proud of Central Queensland Hospital and Health Service, and the world-class treatment we provide.

He reflected on his time with the Board, saying it was a steep learning curve early.

His first major learning was that joining the Health Board wasn’t necessarily all about health services. It’s a complex area that requires flexibility, durability and the ability to react to an ever-changing environment.

“The biggest issue of the time for our staff, our patients, our neighbours and our community was car parking,” Mr Bell said. “We’d had expansion with the new cancer services building, but it was very, very difficult for people to access our services in Rockhampton. It was amazing to see the carpark completed.”

Over the years the Board has been mindful of the need to grow and develop services for a growing and ageing, and transient population.

“That has been a significant part of the Board’s focus,” he said.

Another big focus has been on the need to attract and retain good staff.

“Right from building a clinical workforce, but also the support staff that are needed to help provide services.”

Mr Bell was also proud to be involved in the delivery of the Board’s strategic work including the document Destination 2030 which informs our road map to provide great care for Central Queenslanders.

“And then of course we were smashed by COVID and we were all locked away and became dislocated from the community,” he said.

“We had to deal with our patients under a whole new set of changing rules and it was a very trying time.

“We managed to keep ourselves out of the big outbreaks that happened, and we did particularly well with our public health processes.”

Post-COVID it’s been tough dealing with a tsunami of health issues which is stretching nearly every part of the health system.

“It amazes me how well our staff deal with these things. Right across CQHHS we just get it done and make people better.”

One day that sticks in Mr Bell’s mind was a major traffic accident that involved three vehicles with Chinese tourist families. The Health Emergency Operations Centre (HEOC) was stood up, interpreters deployed, and clinical teams did their work.

“I thought if I was ever in another country that’s what I would want, that people like this would be protecting me and my family,” he said. “It gave me a reinforcement about how good our health service is in Queensland and how good our people are.”

Mr Bell said while he was sad to be finishing his time on the Board, he believed it was time for someone else to bring a new approach.

“It’s been a really hard decision not to renominate, but it’s time for us now to get new vision and a new set of eyes and ears.

“I don’t doubt that this health service will go from strength to strength.”

As well as Mr Bell and Dr Caffery, two other Board members have chosen not to re-nominate – Dr PJ Sobhanian and Professor Fiona Coulson.

CQHHS thanks Mr Bell and our outgoing Board members for their support and vision through their tenures, and we look forward to welcoming the new Board chair and members soon.

Photos of Paul Bell with CQHHS staff during his time as Board Chair