Head hunt

The hunt for a new chief executive officer of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) is in the hands of the hospital’s board.

Speaking to Barbados TODAY at the Eunice Gibson Polyclinic this morning, Minister of Health and Wellness Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic said the QEH’s board, led by its chairman, was in charge of finding a suitable replacement.

He said there were several procedures that had to first be undertaken before recommendations were made for a new CEO.

“Well, that is a matter for the board of the QEH. They will do exactly what they have to do, go through their procedures and then a recommendation would be made to the Minister of Health, which would then go to Cabinet. Up to this point, nothing has come from the chair or the Board of the QEH,” Bostic admitted.

The Minister said, however, while there was no set timeframe for having the position filled, he was planning to meet with Bynoe-Sutherland this week to discuss the matter.

“There’s no time frame coming from me because I know the Board met yesterday [Tuesday], so I will have a meeting with the chair of the Board within the next few days and then she will brief me as to what exactly the situation is and I will then be able to make a determination based on those discussions,” Bostic explained.

Last Friday, the island’s major health institution announced it had mutually parted ways with former CEO Dr. Dexter James, ending his decade-long tenure. At the same time, the QEH said that Director of Support Services Louise Bobb who had been acting in the post in Dr. James’ absence would continue to do so.

Dr. James, who was appointed as CEO back in October 2009, had been on sick leave since February 27 and never returned to work after appearing before the Standing Finance Committee in Parliament as part of the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ team of senior public officials.

During that sitting, and in Dr. James’ presence, it was also revealed that Government had hired an attorney-at-law to examine the CEO’s contract, which had been renewed for four years just days before May 24, 2018, general elections although it was not due for renewal for another 18 months.

The QEH’s chairman Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland said the lawyer’s services had been retained to examine the validity of the contract. randybennett@barbadostoday.bb