Head of Professional Affairs

Role Overview Industry: Health and Medical / Corporate Governance Employment Type: Permanent Location: South Africa Reporting to: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Job Purpose To champion, defend, and strengthen the professional standing of general practitioners, family physicians, and medical specialists across both the public and private sectors. The incumbent will safeguard the fundamental role of medical practitioners in healthcare delivery, ensuring an environment that fosters professional pride, clinical autonomy, and optimal patient care. Key Performance Areas (KPAs) 1. Strategy Development & Implementation Strategic Alignment: Develop, direct, and execute an integrated Professional Affairs strategy aligned with the Organisation's overarching vision, directly supporting the Board and Member Committees. Governance Collaboration: Partner closely with Committee Chairpersons and Board members to operationalise committee decisions and execute strategic priorities effectively. Environmental Scanning: Continually analyse the healthcare landscape to identify immediate and long-term shifts impacting the medical profession, proactively updating or developing robust policy frameworks. Research Oversight: Direct the research agenda, identifying key clinical and socio-economic research activities to be executed internally or through strategic external collaborations. 2. Stakeholder Engagement & Advocacy Relationship Management: Act as the primary liaison between the Organisation’s branches, clinical interest groups, and broader healthcare stakeholders to ensure clear communication on critical medical-political issues. Industry Representation: Represent the Organisation and advocate for the professional interests of doctors at high-level industry forums, symposia, and roundtables. Negotiation & Mediation: Engage, consult, and negotiate daily with medically related external entities—including medical schemes, administrators, clearing houses, statutory bodies, and allied health groups—to protect practitioners' clinical and operational freedom. 3. Business Operations & Commercial Awareness Operational Execution: Execute committee and organisational strategies timeously to safeguard doctors' professional interests and address member queries, complaints, and escalations. Project Management: Oversee and deliver key healthcare projects identified by the constituency, committee plans, and industry developments. Legislative Monitoring: Monitor healthcare legislation, economic shifts, and policy updates to draft impactful submissions, journal articles, and press releases on behalf of the profession. Executive Advisory: Provide corrective, evidence-based recommendations to the CEO and Committee Chairs regarding practice management, practitioner remuneration, Remunerative Work Outside the Public Service (RWOPS), and medical expense inflation. 4. Medical Coding System & Intellectual Property (IP) Coding System Governance: Oversee the administration and structural management of the procedural coding system for the South African healthcare industry. Implementation: Play a pioneering role in driving the implementation of the Complete CPT system across the local healthcare sector. IP Protection: Ensure all commercial licensees hold valid, enforceable contracts regarding American Medical Association (AMA) CPT usage, safeguarding the Organisation’s intellectual property. Commercialisation: Identify and exploit ethical commercial opportunities derived from holding the CPT intellectual property rights. 5. Health Policy Review & Risk Management Global Best Practice: Direct the research team to monitor local and international legislative changes, keeping the Organisation ahead of health policy trends and global best practices. Risk Mitigation: Proactively identify financial and operational threats to the medical profession, alerting the executive structures timeously and proposing comprehensive mitigation strategies. 6. Departmental Leadership & Financial Governance Team Leadership: Plan, direct, and coordinate the activities of direct reports to ensure divisional KPIs are achieved. Performance Management: Manage staff performance by facilitating structured reviews, driving talent development, and overseeing disciplinary processes where necessary. Financial Management: Compile, manage, and report on the annual budget for the Professional Affairs Department and its relevant committees, ensuring strict expenditure controls. Job Requirements & Qualifications Minimum Qualifications MBChB Degree (or equivalent medical degree): Essential. MBA (Master of Business Administration): Essential. Professional Registration: Current, active registration with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and active membership with the South African Medical Association (SAMA). Experience Required 7–10 years of total working experience within the medical and healthcare industry, including: Private Practice: 5+ years of direct experience. Public Sector: 3+ years of direct experience. Senior Management: 5–10 years in a leadership role within the healthcare sector. Healthcare Funding Industry: ~3 years of experience in managed healthcare, medical scheme administration, or funding models. Demonstrated experience in Medical Research and Healthcare Marketing.