Sam Hervey became chairman of the trust in December last year, taking on the same position held by his father Mark and his grandfather Russell, a former mayor of Timaru.
But the new chairman says his motivation to join Bidwill’s board some three years ago was more about the benefit he sees the hospital providing the community of South Canterbury, and his interest in seeing that continue to succeed and develop, than it was from any family tradition.
"That said, I have a strong family involvement in health. My mother was a theatre nurse, one of my sisters is an ICU nurse, the other a hospital architect, I have two brothers-in-law who are both doctors and my wife Rachael is an occupational therapist."
Mr Hervey works in finance and that, too, was one of his motivations to join the Bidwill Board.
"I always thought that with my career in finance that it was a natural thing to do, to seek a board role at some stage in my professional life and when I discussed it with Rachael she agreed that an opportunity for me to join the Bidwill team was a great thing to do personally and for the community.
"Bidwill has an amazing board. There is a great combination of professionals and a very progressive attitude. There is a real commitment to continuous improvement. We want to keep delivering a high-quality service to the people of South Canterbury while also providing the best equipment and conditions we can for our staff, surgeons and specialists.
"It’s important for the people in our area to have the choice of Bidwill as a fine hospital with great surgeons and specialists, so they do not have to go a long way from home to, say, Christchurch or Dunedin."
Mr Hervey said he could not emphasise enough how the success of the hospital was driven by its staff and surgeons.
"We are so lucky to have the people we have across every facet of the organisation, from surgeons and management to nursing staff and administration. They are all amazing and it is a testament to the team that there is a high percentage of people who stay with the hospital long term."
Mr Hervey is also proud of the fact that the hospital is owned by a charitable trust.
"It’s a charity first and foremost. I think the donations the board is able to make to other health-related organisations in South Canterbury is one of the most important functions we have. And we can’t do that without an effective, progressive hospital that continues to thrive."
A primary goal as chairman was seeing continuous improvement and development of services the hospital can offer people in the region.
"This is where we can really benefit health delivery in South Canterbury. Because we can offer surgeons the option of adding a private practice alongside a role they might apply for at Timaru Hospital, it makes a decision to move to the area more attractive, and that benefits everybody."
