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Abstract

This paper is a preliminary assessment of the changed role of health and social services boards in Northern Ireland since their restructuring as management bodies by the government. Key changes in board restructuring are designed to make executive and non-executive board members more accountable and responsive to health user needs. This study seeks to discover some of the characteristics of the first group of board members. This includes their composition, operation and role.

Non-executives are appointed on the basis of the professional and administrative expertise that they can contribute to the planning and policy- making processes performed at executive level. They need to be on par with executives who have now acquired the dual roles of policy planning and making decisions in the boardroom. For non-executives, a prior knowledge of the health service is not required; chairmen interviewed in this study prefer their members to show an interest in and demonstrate commitment to the health service.

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April 1991 and Beyond: Are Health and Social Services Boards Catching the Tide of Change?

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