Nigel Murray has been named as the new Waikato District Health Board CEO.

Nigel says he is 'excited” at the prospect of joining Waikato District Health Board as its new chief executive later next month.

Dr Nigel Murray.

The announcement was made by board chair Bob Simcock that Dr Murray, who until recently the president and CEO at Fraser Health Authority in Canada, will take over from Craig Climo on Monday, July 21.

It will be a return 'home” to New Zealand and specifically to the Waikato for the 59-year-old former physician and NZ Army officer.

His family have dairy farmed in the Walton district since the late 1880s and his father, a retired cardiologist, still lives there today.

'I went to Walton Primary School and have so many fond memories of playing rugby in the paddock down there. My mother and her cousins all went to the same school,” says Nigel. Nigel has a clear idea of what lies ahead for him and is ready to tackle things head on.