An Honour Board for all

15 Nov 2018

15 November 2018 

The names of the Chairs of Trustees, Board Chairs and Group Chief Executive Officers since 1989, when the Sisters of St John of God services were transferred to St John of God Health Care, are listed on the board, which was unveiled by Chair of Trustees Eva Skira and Regional Leader of the Congregation of Sisters of St John of God Sr Isobel Moran.

Eva said the Honour Board provided a reflection on the changing times in healthcare and Australia more broadly over the past 29 years.

“It is like a tree, the rings of a 30-year -old tree tell us something about the environment that it has grown in, just as this Honour Board does,” she said.

“We can see this wonderful progression of the Sisters to lay leadership which reflected Vatican II and the broad environment of the Church.“We can also see a global shift in healthcare leadership from nurses and doctors as leaders to a move towards leaders with backgrounds in law, corporate and finance businesses.

“Finally, most of the names are Anglo Celtic which is a recognition of the waves of Irish and English immigration that have come to our shores.

“Furthermore, of the 22 entries, 11 are women and 11 are men which is wonderful to see.”

However, Eva said the significance of the Honour Board extended beyond those names listed.

“The Honour Board just has the names of the Chairs and Group Chief Executive Officers but we know that  behind each leader there is a group around them, a whole list of Trustees, Board members and senior executives and I would say there are at least a couple of hundred of those over the past 29 years,” she said.

“To me, the Honour Board reflects those people and the 50,000 or so caregivers who have provided care to what would be more than a million patients who have been served and touched by our care in the name of Jesus Christ.”

St John of God Health Care Group Chief Executive Officer Dr Shane Kelly said the board was an acknowledgement of the vision and teamwork shown by the Trustees, Board members and leaders who built on the foundations set in 1989.

“The Honour Board is a tangible artefact of the dedicated work of those who are named on the board and of the mutual support which existed between them,” he said.

St John of God Health Care Board Chair Hon Kerry Sanderson AC said the three sections of the Honour Board showed the wonderful partnership and teamwork between the Trustees, the Board and management.

“This teamwork and partnership, and the important heritage of the Sisters of St John of God, has been critical to the success of St John of God Health Care,” she said.

“While the Honour Board recognises the Chairs and Chief Executive Officers they would be the first to acknowledge the team who supported them, and their names are symbolic of the names of those who worked tirelessly for the organisation.”

Honour Board quick stats

• 22 Honour Board entries
• 8 Sisters of St John of God
• 6 Nurses
• 5 Doctors
• 11 Women
• 11 Men

Honour Board list

Chair of Trustees

• 1989-1990 Sr Verna Haugh SJG
• 1990-1992 Sr Assumption Neary SJG
• 1992-1993 Sr Ann Bannon SJG
• 1993-1996 Sr Corona Gainford SJG
• 1996-1999 Sr Patricia Doyle SJG
• 2000-2007 Sr Isobel Moran SJG
• 2007-2011 Donald Good
• 2011-2013 Clive Macknay
• 2014- Eva Skira

Chair of Board

• 1990-1991 Sr Mary Kiely SJG
• 1991-1992 Hon Antoinette Kennedy AO
• 1993-1995 Terrence O’Connor QC AM
• 1995-1998 Prof Michael Quinlan AO
• 1999-2003 Clive Macknay
• 2004-2018 Anthony Howarth AO
• 2018- Hon Kerry Sanderson AC

Group Chief Executive Officer

• 1989-1994 Tim McDonald
• 1994-1997 Dr James Breheny OAM
• 1997-1998 Sr Pauline O’Connor SJG
• 1998-2002 Ivor Davies
• 2002-2018 Dr Michael Stanford AM
• 2018- Dr Shane Kelly