Metro North Health Chief Executive announces retirement
Adj. Prof. Jackie Hanson, Chief Executive
Today, Metro North Health Chief Executive Adjunct Professor Jackie Hanson announced her retirement after 47 years in the public health sector. Metro North Health Board Chair Bernard Curran expressed his gratitude to Jackie for her service to health.
“On behalf of the Board and the Senior Leadership Team I want to sincerely thank Adjunct Professor Jackie Hanson for her leadership of Metro North over the past seven years as she enters her well-deserved retirement and celebrate her contribution to healthcare.
To lead an organisation with the scale of Metro North Health is an enormous undertaking and Jackie has been devoted to making the organisation the best it can be. She has demonstrated in her work our values of teamwork, respect, compassion, integrity and high performance. I have had the pleasure of working with Jackie for several years on the Metro North Hospital and Health Board prior to becoming Chair, and more closely over the last 18 months.
Jackie’s Metro North career commenced in April 2018 as Chief Operating Officer, working closely with the Chief Executive and the clinical leadership, before stepping into the Chief Executive role.
The HHS has benefited from Jackie’s 25 years of experience in healthcare leadership in Queensland and South Australia, as well as her extensive clinical experience throughout her nursing career.
She has always been an advocate for the people in our health service and the people we care for, always taking a people first approach. This is evident in her championship of the Compassionate Care Principles, Metro North’s First Nations Health Equity agenda, including our Anti Racism campaign, and her commitment to understanding organisational culture through the Have Your Say survey and taking steps to improve where needed. Through the Chief Executive’s Award over the years she has recognised the outstanding contribution of many who contribute and whose work goes unnoticed.
Great leaders shine in times of great challenge. I remember going to our first planning meeting for our COVID response preparation and was in awe of the calm, methodical approach based on well documented pandemic plans. This was Jackie at her best! This leadership influenced not only Metro North’s response but Metro North Health lead many statewide initiatives such virtual wards, airport vaccinations, virtual ED, and empowering frontline clinicians to make decisions based on their expertise.
Despite being a self-described introvert, Jackie has constantly pushed herself out of her comfort zone to frequently engage with staff and patients, to truly hear the challenges they face and ensure every effort to influence change. Her health leadership extends beyond Metro North to her roles with various statewide and national committees and organisations.
Jackie’s legacy and contribution will be for Metro North to benefit from for years to come. She recently launched our new strategic plan and the new vision ‘Creating healthier futures together—where innovation and research meets compassionate care and community voices shape our services’ really spoke to how Jackie saw a brighter future for Metro North Hospital and Health Service, our dedicated staff and the communities we serve.
Please join me in wishing Jackie a wonderful retirement and thank her for her outstanding leadership with Metro North Health.
Dr Elizabeth Rushbrook has been appointed as Acting Chief Executive and the Board is working closely with her during this transitional period. We will commence the recruitment process soon.”