Former Ovens and King Community Health CEO Ann Wearne works to ensure community health continues to be seen as a valued and essential part of the health service.
The CEO position with the Ovens and King service was Ann’s first connection to community health but she still holds an interest in health today, serving on a hospital board.
“Ovens and King Community Health Service was a well-loved organisation with deep roots into the community including in the isolated areas in the Ovens and King Valleys,” Ann said.
“I was delighted to be given the CEO position as I believed community health had, and continues to have, much to give our communities.
“Ovens and King Community Health Service had strong connections with many small communities as well as the larger population centre of Wangaratta with a strong emphasis on health promotion and prevention and providing quality services that offer an alternative to people accessing the acute public health system.”
Ann said the merger between the Ovens and King and Gateway health services was a means of securing the future of both services with a larger organisation able to create efficiencies and remain sustainable.
“The communities were accepting of the merger provided the level and quality of service was continued,” she said.
“At Ovens and King, we had successfully built a state-of-the-art community health service in Mackay St in Wangaratta with improved accessibility and modern office space for staff.
“We had also established a bulk-billing GP clinic that provided medical services to the community which at that time were not readily available.
“This was a positive outcome for the communities we serve.”
Ann said community health was an excellent adjunct to the acute system, preventing people having to access acute services by providing high quality, healthcare across a range of areas including allied health, alcohol and drug services, aged care, health promotion, mental health and wellbeing as well as general practice and specialised clinics.
“The impact of community health has always been in its role of providing health services close to the communities it serves,” Ann said.
“I hope community health continues to be seen as a valuable – indeed essential – health service.”
This July marks the 10th anniversary of the merger of Gateway Community Health Service in Wodonga and Ovens & King Community Health Service in Wangaratta.
Today, Gateway Health is a charitable, not-for-profit community health organisation providing affordable healthcare, support services, community programs, and outreach initiatives across North East Victoria and parts of southern NSW.
The needs of rural and regional people and communities are our priority when delivering quality care across sites in Wodonga, Wangaratta, Myrtleford, Benalla and Shepparton.
