Late last week, the Otago Daily Times reported Deloitte New Zealand partner Mike Hoshek received more than $10,000 a week, including expenses.
He has been in the job since mid-July.
The board has been seeking a permanent finance chief for several months. Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director Ian Powell said the health board needed to ''break the cycle'' of seeking expensive external advice.
''This latest funding for a temporary head of financial is just another example of short-sighted thinking that involves throwing money at a problem seemingly indefinitely.
''What we need to see in a more general sense is greater investment in the senior doctors working at the DHB's hospitals.
''If the commissioners and hospital managers create a culture that encourages clinical engagement, that will lead to better decision making, less waste and an improvement in the DHB's financial position.''
Commissioner Kathy Grant has defended the spending, as the board did not have a full time chief financial officer in June, when she was appointed to get the finances on track.
The board is also trying to recruit a chief medical officer. An internal recruitment drive failed to find a suitable candidate, and the board is now advertising the top medical position externally.
