Dr Humsha Naidoo reflects on IWD 2017 theme, Be bold for change

For Bendigo Health chief medical officer and executive director of clinical support services, Dr Humsha Naidoo, being bold means being proactive.

“Being aware that there are issues around equality for women in the workplace that need that extra bit of action to be taken,” she said.

And proactive she has been, in building her career.

Dr Naidoo is a doctor, with a master of health services management, and a law degree. 

“Education is the cornerstone of progressing in terms of leadership roles and being recognised for the skills and expertise women have and can have,” she said. 

“I think the more you study, the more skills you get, the more you can get into the workplace and be recognised for those skills and be able to aspire to very senior leadership roles.”

By her own admission, she is almost overqualified for her role. 

“When you apply for jobs you just think, as a woman, you probably need to over compromise in terms of the education aspect so you become competitive,” Dr Naidoo said. 

She was encouraged to study medicine by her father, who was a school principal. 

“He was very supportive of women and equality in the workplace,” Dr Naidoo said. 

“He very proud that I finally became a doctor.”

It was in South Africa that she completed her bachelors of medicine and surgery, as well as diplomas in tropical medicine and hygiene and public health, her medical internship, and junior medical staff registrar training.

She had senior management roles in local government and at training hospitals. Her studies then shifted to health service management.  

By 1998, opportunities to expand her knowledge abroad were beckoning. Dr Naidoo conducted a study tour of hospitals in North America and Canada that July, and in December became a provincial representative visiting hospitals in France. 

By 2000, she was living in Australia.

For about five years, Dr Naidoo worked as the deputy director of acute services and the acting chief medical officer at Austin Health in Melbourne. 

Towards the end of that period, she graduated from Monash University with a Master of Health Services Management and became a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators. 

She worked as the locum director of medical services at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, in New South Wales, for a few months in mid-2005.

Then, she became the director of medical services for eight rural hospitals in the Grampians region. 

From February to October 2006, Dr Naidoo worked as the director of medical governance and patient safety at Peninsula Health. 

By November that year, she was the executive director of clinical governance and risk and the chief medical officer at Northern Health in Melbourne.

In 2009, Dr Naidoo relocated to Queensland. 

She worked at Cairns Base Hospital as the locum director of medical services, and at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital as the deputy executive director of medical services. 

From December 2012 - August 2014, Dr Naidoo was the Queensland Department of Health’s acting principal medical officer. 

Just before that, she completed training to become an Australian Council on Healthcare Standards accreditation surveyor.

As if she wasn’t busy enough, Dr Naidoo completed a law degree in 2013. 

She was invited to join the prestigious Golden Key International Honour Society, after graduating from the Juris Doctor with distinction. 

The opportunity to take up her post at Bendigo Health saw Dr Naidoo move back to Victoria and settle in our city.

“I think the main thrust of managing hospitals is engaging staff,” she said. 

“What you need to do is develop a common vision so everyone knows what the expectation is.”

From there, she said it was a matter of taking small steps towards a bigger vision. 

“The leadership roles I’ve had as a woman have been quite successful,” Dr Naidoo said. 

“Women have different personalities – let’s put that on the table. 

“I think women leaders have a far better grasp of that total person, compared to male leaders… there is more perception about things going on in the person’s life besides the work life.”

She raised two children as she was developing her career. 

On Tuesday, Dr Naidoo shared some of the wisdom she had gathered throughout her journey with attendees at the Zonta Club of Bendigo’s International Women’s Day dinner. 

She spoke to the theme of International Women’s Day, ‘Be bold for change.’

“There has been a lot of work done in terms of how we prevent bullying and harassment in hospitals, especially in relation to women trainees and women doctors working in a workplace that’s very male dominated,” Dr Naidoo said. 

“As a result, there have been a lot of strategies put in place in hospitals around Australia to highlight this issue and make sure it does not occur.”

She said most hospitals had policies and strategies about preventing bullying and harassment.

“As chief medical officer of Bendigo Health, I personally take this very seriously,” Dr Naidoo said.

“It is very important for me to make sure this doesn’t occur in my hospital.”