The new Bermuda Hospitals Board will look to improve communications between staff and management in a bid to prevent problems arising from the changing nature of the Island's medical facilities.

The news came yesterday as the new 12-member board was unveiled by Health Minister Nelson Bascome.

The board, which will be chaired by Raymonde Dill, also includes Jane Spurling, Ianthia Wade, Dr. Burton Butterfield, Lynn Cann, Colin James, Dr.

Donald Peters, Eugene Blakeney, Perry Trott, Dr. John Patton, Dr. John Cann and Vivienne King.

Mr. Dill outlined the new board's prime responsibility as being able to work with the management teams at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and St.

Brendan's Hospital and ensure that their strategies were consistent with the policies of the Government of the day and with the needs of civilians.

Mr. Dill, who sat on the former board for two years and chaired its finance committee during that time, said he would be looking to get more involved in clinical and staffing issues.

The hospitals were going through a period of change, he pointed out, and change always proved to be difficult. There was work to do with the staff and some things could have been done better when the process of change began, he said.

And Mr. Dill pointed to communications as one area that could have been handled better when the process of change began in the hospitals.

"Communications can be labelled as one of the issues which may not have been done as well as it should have been done,'' he said.

It was important to get the right message out at the right time and make sure that all the staff in both hospitals and across every department received that message, he continued.

This was key to make sure that staff knew what their roles would be in the future so they could see the big picture.

NEW BEGINNING -- Health Minister Nelson Bascome (left) with some of the members of the new Bermuda Hospitals Board which is made up of chairman Raymonde Dill (third from right), Dr. Donald Peters, Ianthia Wade, Dr. John Patton, Dr. Burton Butterfield, Dr. John Cann, Jane Spurling, Lynn Cann, Colin James, Eugene Blakeney, Perry Trott and Vivienne King.