GPNZ welcomes Dr Lester Levy as newly announced chair of Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora

General Practice New Zealand (GPNZ) welcomes Dr Lester Levy as the newly announced chair of Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora (Health NZ).

“General practice and primary care are central to a functioning, robust health system and GPNZ looks forward to working with Dr Levy to address the critical issues we face,” says Porirua-based Specialist General Practitioner and Chair of GPNZ, Dr Bryan Betty.

The sustainability of general practice, access to equitable primary health care and the future of Primary Health Organisations are at the forefront of the primary care sector's concerns.

GPNZ had a high level of engagement with previous chair Dame Karen Poutasi, who visited many regions across New Zealand to understand the complexities facing the sector.

"I cannot underestimate the value of these visits in terms of what they have done to bring frontline PHO and provider mahi to the forefront of Health NZ thinking.

“We hope to provide a similar programme of visits to Primary Health Organisations and general practices for Dr Levy. We know this first-hand experience delivered great understanding of not only the challenges faced, but also the continued innovation and deep commitment to communities the primary care sector consistently has delivered throughout the health reforms.”

GPNZ hopes to engage early with Dr Levy to ensure the fundamental challenges of general practice and primary care receive the attention they deserve at the Health NZ board level.