Message from the chief executive
Adjunct Professor Anthony M. Schembri AM
Dear colleagues,
LGBTQIA+ community.
As winter takes hold our emergency departments are experiencing an influx of patients with respiratory illnesses. I want to thank those staff who are working extremely hard during this busy flu season. We have seen 72 per cent of our staff vaccinated against the flu which is a great result, but I hope we can get this rate higher. We know the flu vaccination is our first line of defense against serious infection, so if you or your loved ones haven’t had the vaccination yet, please do so. I want to extend congratulations to Dr Penny Browne and Associate Professor Elisabeth Murphy who were honoured in the King’s Birthday Honours. Penny received the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her service to general practice and medicine. Penny is a GP at the Hornsby- Brooklyn GP Unit, at Hornsby Ku-ring- gai Hospital and has been a mentor to hundreds of junior doctors pursuing a career in medicine. Elisabeth was awarded a public service medal (PSM) for outstanding public service to child and family health programs in NSW. Elisabeth has been the district’s network director of child, youth and family services before joining NSW Ministry of Health on secondment, where she is the senior clinical advisor for child and family health. This month is Pride Month and is a moment for us to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions and achievements of our LGBTQIA+ colleagues. Pride Month underscores our district’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and the support of our
As part of our Reconciliation Week celebrations, I had the privilege of attending a ceremony introducing Aunty Debbie Watson, a traditional Ngangkari healer, to Hornsby to provide healing to the community. This ancient Aboriginal practice, connecting the Indigenous community to their country, is culturally significant and I am so pleased we were able to host Debbie for a week at Hornsby Hospital. Ryde Hospital’s redevelopment has received a boost in funding from the NSW Government which has committed an extra $47.8 million in this year’s budget towards the redevelopment, which now totals $526.8 million. I joined Minister for Health Ryan Park as he toured the hospital’s emergency department and made the budget announcement which was warmly welcomed by staff. Nominations are now open for the Public Service Medal (PSM), which recognises the outstanding service of public sector employees. If you know of someone doing outstanding work, please feel free to nominate them. Nominations close earlier this year and must be received by 1 July 2024.
Adjunct Professor Anthony M. Schembri AM Chief Executive Northern Sydney Local Health District
NSLHDNEWS | ISSUE 11| 14 JUNE 2024
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