Ah, July, when a new financial year sparks mass movement across the sector.
In a bumper week for job vacancies in the health sector a few crackers stand out from the crowd.
At the top of the heap is the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing which has posted an advertisement for two deputy secretaries – “ideally one with experience in leading corporate services and another with experience in developing and delivering policies and programs”.
A quick visit to the DoHDA’s leadership webpage tells us that currently the dep sec of Health Strategy, First Nations and Sport is being filled in an acting capacity by Celia Street, who led the department’s Health Reform Taskforce early this year, successfully negotiating a one-year extension to the National Health Reform Agreement and “delivering an additional $1.7 billion to fund public hospitals and health services”.
Ms Street has been acting in the role since February this year.
There are five other dep secs in the DoHDA – health products regulation group (Professor Tony Lawler), health resourcing (Penny Shakespeare), ageing and aged care (Sonja Stewart), primary and community care (Dr Liz Develin), and interim Australian Centre for Disease Control (Mary Wood).
It’s a fair bet the health strategy role and the ACDC role – given the new permanent CDC starts in January – are the ones being advertised. Watch this space.
Meanwhile, Queensland Health (or rather eHealth Queensland) is recruiting for a chief clinical information officer. The role is currently filled on an acting basis by Raelene Donovan who has been filling in since the inaugural CCIO Keith McNeil left to become SA Health’s commissioner for excellence and innovation in health.
The CCIO reports to the deputy director-general of eHealth Queensland and operates as a member of the eHealth Queensland executive management team, leading the development, implementation and governance of clinical ICT initiatives that “enhance patient safety, clinical workflows, and healthcare delivery”.
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Queensland Health is also looking for a manager of digital transformation. No small task.
Healthdirect Australia wants a program director; eHealth NSW are searching for a handful of clinical technology integration staff to work on its single digital patient record; the CSIRO is looking for a digital health business development manager; in Victoria, the Royal Children’s Hospital wants a director of its Children’s Cancer Centre, and Alfred Health is seeking a digital health business analyst.
And troubled fertility clinic Monash IVF is looking for a media and analytics manager. No thanks.
PHN wants board directors
Central and Eastern Sydney PHN is seeking expressions of interest for three elected director positions on its board of directors, starting in November 2025.
Apart from the usual governance experience, CESPHN is particularly interested in candidates with experience in one or more of the following areas:
- legal;
- commercial/business;
- information technology.
EOIs must be submitted by midnight on Wednesday 30 July, with unsuccessful applicants notified by late August. Shortlisted applicants will be invited on 21 August to submit a detailed application by Wednesday 27 August. Final-stage candidates will have a 30-minute interview, and then the seven member companies of CESPHN will then vote to determine the final appointments.
Successful candidates will be notified two weeks prior to the AGM, which will be held on Tuesday 18 November.
Startup appoints CMO
Somewhat mysterious preventive care startup TMRW has announced that Dr Chris Chappel is its chief medical officer.
While its website is not giving much away, TMRW’s announcement says it “uses AI to analyse over 1700 biomarkers, integrate wearable data, and deliver dynamic care protocols in real time — all at a fraction of the cost of traditional functional medicine”.
“The company’s clinical model is designed to scale, augmenting the capacity of practitioners while improving the precision of care.
“This news follows the integration of Humanli, a wellness platform focused on women’s health and midlife care, and last week’s launch of TMRW’s bold brand campaign with Today The Brave, in which it launched a ‘punk healthcare’ movement.
“This appointment signals TMRW’s continued investment in serving underserved audiences with meaningful, affordable, and personalised preventive care.”
Dr Chappel, a “functional medicine doctor”, is a GP with further qualifications in nutritional and environmental medicine, functional medicine, anti-ageing medicine and metabolic medicine.
“Throughout my medical career, I’ve seen first-hand how reactive and limited our current healthcare system can be, especially when it comes to prevention,” said Dr Chappel.
“A turning point for me was during my time in vascular surgery, seeing patients return again and again for more stents and amputations, often unaware or unconvinced that they could change their trajectory.
“TMRW represents a much-needed shift. We’re combining deep diagnostics, personalised care, and cutting-edge technology to deliver proactive, scalable, and truly holistic health solutions.
“It’s about giving people the tools, time and insight to take control of their health — long before symptoms emerge. This is the future of healthcare, and I’m thrilled to be part of building it.”