**************************************************************
The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
The Chairman of the Hospital Authority (HA), Mr Anthony Wu, today (January 23) announced on behalf of the HA the re-appointment of Mr Shane Solomon as the Chief Executive of the Authority for a term of three years with effect from March 1, 2009. Mr Solomon's re-appointment has been endorsed by the HA Board and approved by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Mr Solomon's salary remains unchanged.
In making the announcement today, Mr Wu said the Board unanimously expressed deep gratitude and appreciation for Mr Solomon's contribution and commitment to the healthcare of the people of Hong Kong.
Mr Solomon has held the post of HA Chief Executive since 2006. During the past three years, he has driven many changes and reforms in the organisation. These include an enhanced career development structure for doctors and nurses, doctor work reform, Hospital Chief Executive rotation programme, leadership and succession initiatives, advocacy for greater transparency and accountability in the HA, pursuit of higher quality and safety standards, and the recently launched "Pay for Performance" internal resource allocation model.
Mr Wu said, "In view of increasing public expectations of service quality and accessibility, as well as accountability and responsiveness of public hospitals, the Authority will be facing new challenges in the years ahead. I am confident that Mr Solomon, with his wealth of experience and capability, will be able to lead the Authority in continuing to uphold the integrity of the public healthcare system and providing quality healthcare in partnership with the private sector to meet ever changing community needs.
"It certainly has not been an easy three years for the HA, but working together as a team, we have come a long way. Mr Solomon is an outstanding Chief Executive and I am sure that we will be able to take HA to new heights in service quality and professional standards."
Ends/Friday, January 23, 2009
Issued at HKT 18:30
NNNN
