Mater MAC Update 

September 2025

Our Mater Medical Advisory Committee (MAC) met on August 26 and below is a summary of the discussion themes from the meeting. 

Mater Hospital Updates

Welcome Adam Coyle – the meeting welcomed Adam who has joined our team as the Chief Financial Officer of our three NSW Private Hospitals. Adams brings experience as the CFO for an acute healthcare facility and over two decades experience in the finance sector.

Admissions Policy – the MAC reviewed the hospital’s admission policy and provided feedback regarding not having an exclusion framework, rather a mechanism for VMOs to escalate directly to the Hospital Executive, to confirm the suitability of a patient's admission prior to submission of a booking form.

Public Patients – a Collaborative Care Agreement has been reached to support Royal Prince Alfred Hospital for some vascular surgical procedures whilst they replace their vascular lab over the coming months. 

Ethos Program – the Ethos program will be relaunched to support all members of our Hospital team.

Patient Care Review Committee – a revised framework for how cases are tabled for review was presented and supported by the MAC. The framework aims to improve the timely review of clinical care, with the intent of streamlining clinical case reviews whilst also strengthening the governance process.

Redevelopment Update

The redevelopment of our palliative and supportive care unit is progressing well, with the fit-out looking impressive. We expect Paynter Dixon to complete construction by late November, after which we will begin the commissioning phase. Although the practical completion date is set for 12 February 2026, we have requested that Paynter Dixon make the new clinical areas operational from 27 January. Both parties are working collaboratively towards achieving this earlier date.

Meditech Update

We continue to offer monthly VMO Education sessions to support VMO onboarding and address any questions related to the system. Matthew Dwyer, our Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist, is available to assist VMOs with utilizing the Meditech platform. Our current focus is on optimizing the system and improving VMO onboarding before considering the adoption of additional modules for the platform.

Sinclair Street Properties

St Vincent's and the Sisters of Mercy North Sydney recently announced the sale of six properties on Gillies and Sinclair Streets in Wollstonecraft. These properties consist of two free-standing houses owned by St Vincent’s and four by the Sisters of Mercy. The St Vincent’s properties, currently housing support staff, will see these staff members relocated to another part of the Mater campus. Importantly, this sale does not impact the Hospital’s master plan, which has earmarked other areas within the main campus for future development, including additional theatres and consulting suites as needed. The joint sale underscores the ongoing relationship between St Vincent’s and the Sisters of Mercy, with the proceeds directed towards furthering their shared mission.

VMO Engagement Survey

96 VMOs completed this year's Engagement Survey - an increase from 72 responses in 2024.The overall quality of care and reputation, doctor relationships and quality of staff were the top three areas as rated by our VMOs. The survey responses also indicated strengths across nursing quality, access to material and equipment; actions for safety; confidence in senior leadership; hospital recommendation for care and workplace satisfaction. We acknowledge the feedback that we need to keep working to improve teamwork; information sharing; pre-admission and admission process and car parking.

Financial Performance YTD FY26

An overview of the hospital's year-to-date (YTD) performance was presented, highlighting details of the budget for the current financial year. Despite procedural volumes fluctuating during July and August, the hospital successfully met its budget through effective expense management that adapted to the varying activity levels. Theatre utilization currently stands at 72% and enhancing this is a primary focus for the hospital management team. They are actively working with VMOs to improve all theatre and procedural lists, which is essential for reinvesting in the hospital and supporting our team.

Credentialing

The MAC discussed concerns regarding VMOs who are credentialed however are not consulting or admitting to the hospital. The By-Laws do articulate a minimum activity (minimum of thirty cases or admissions per annum). An activity review will now take place as part of each VMO's re-accreditation.

The MAC discussed nominations for Consultant Emeritus credentialing and are currently considering a number of nominations which were tabled at the meeting to acknowledge a Medical Practitioner recognised as having provided distinguished service to the Mater Hospital and who has retired from active practice or is otherwise a member of the medical profession of outstanding merit or extraordinary accomplishment.