Wellbeing SA scrapped as chief Lyn Dean retires amid lastest SA Health upheaval

SA Health faces further upheavals with a key executive leaving and a major agency being scrapped.

SA Health faces a major shake up with Wellbeing SA to be folded into a new agency as its chief executive Lyn Dean abruptly leaves in an executive purge.

Her departure follows the abrupt resignation of Women’s and Children’s Health Network chief executive Lindsey Gough who finishes up on Friday.

It also follows the sudeen departure of another top SA Health bureaucrat Lesley Dwyer, who quit in June after five years as chief executive of the Central Adelaide Local Health Network.

Wellbeing SA was established by the former Liberal government in January 2020 to promote healthy lifestyles and to prevent risk factors developing into diseases rather than just focusing on treating people after they fall ill.

Lyn Dean who was appointed the head of new health agency Wellbeing SA, pictured in February 2020. Picture Dean Martin

Health Minister Chris Picton plans to combine the almost $90m Wellbeing SA with parts of other agencies including Drug and Alcohol SA to create a new body, Preventive Health SA.

This will focus on a wide range of lifestyle disease challenges including obesity, alcohol abuse and vaping.

Its budget is still being determined.

In a memo to staff, Mr Picton said he had met with Ms Dean, who then announced she was retiring after 17 years as an executive across SA Health.

It is understood her contract, which paid her $311,891 a year - including $26,083 in salary sacrificed superannuation contributions - was extended for 12 months late last year.

Health Minister Chris Picton. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

“I want to sincerely thank Lyn for her hard work and dedication to public service over that time especially over the past three and a half years as ceo of Wellbeing SA,” his memo states.

“Since its inception, Wellbeing SA has led excellent programs and policies in furthering the agenda for prevention and I want to thank all of you for the for your role in that work.

“It’s a huge task starting from scratch and much has been achieved in that time thanks to the efforts of your team.

“We now start on the next steps to work to build on that work and work toward our commitment to establishing Preventive Health SA.

“The new agency will bring together Wellbeing SA, and parts of Drug and Alcohol SA to connect all the strands of prevention work: obesity, tobacco, vaping, mental health, suicide prevention, alcohol, and the social determinants of health.

“This work will be led by Marina Bowshall who will be starting on Tuesday as the new interim chief executive.

“Marina is a strong leader, who has already been driving preventive health work in the areas of tobacco, alcohol, other drugs, and vaping.”

Mr Picton said he is passionate about the need to increase focus on prevention.

“While we tackle issues across our health system we can make better evidence-based interventions to help prevent costs, injury and illness across our state and I look forward to doing that together,” he said.

The changes follow other senior SA Health executives suddenly leaving in recent months including former deputy chief executive Don Frater and one of the faces of the pandemic, Dr Emily Kirkpatrick, who resigned late last year for the private sector.