Interviews for Cayman’s new chief medical officer are set to get under way soon, interim CMO Dr. Autilia Newton has confirmed.
Newton, speaking on the 9 Feb. episode of the Cayman Compass Facebook talk show The Resh Hour, said candidates have been selected based on responses to advertisements for the highest medical professional post in Cayman.
“We are going to interview shortly for the permanent post and these are quite senior people we are interviewing. It is a very important position with extremely high responsibilities,” she said.
Newton was temporarily appointed last year following the resignation of Dr. John Lee in September, ahead of the May 2022 expiration of his contract.
Lee, who was appointed in 2019, indicated his intention to leave Cayman because of his parents’ failing health. He left island last month.
Back in December, Governor Martyn Roper paid tribute to Lee, who he called a “Cayman icon and hero” for his efforts leading Cayman’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years.
In the post, Roper explained that Lee requested to mark his farewell with his friends, a 5km run and a bacon sandwich at Government House.
Newton, the Overseas Territories advisor for the UK’s Health Security Agency (previously known as Public Health England), took up the role late last year.
Her contract is up on 6 March, but she expects that the recruitment process could see her time in the post extended slightly.
“Because we want the best of the best of the best for Cayman, you might be expecting that these [candidates] might not be available immediately so there might be a gap of a few months before they can come. I will be covering until the person, the permanent one, comes in…. [and] it is unlikely that it is going [to happen] by 6 March when my original term ends,” she said in the interview.
The Compass has reached out to the Health Ministry for comment on the recruitment drive and the extension of Newton’s contract, and is awaiting a response.
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