Chairman Michael Siddle said Mr Thodey, who was Telstra CEO and managing director from 2009 to 2015, would join Ramsay's board as a non-executive on November 28.

Ramsay's shares rose more than 4 per cent to a high of $67.48 in morning trade, and were 3.39 per cent firmer at $67.06 by mid-afternoon.

Mr Thodey led Telstra through a period of rapid change, including negotiating through the national broadband network and leading a push to get more women into senior roles.

He left his high-profile role at Telstra with a massive pay cheque - almost $14.5 million for his last year in the role.

Mr Thodey is chairman of CSIRO and the Jobs for NSW Fund, and a member of the advisory board of United Healthcare. He is also an adviser to venture capital firm Square Peg Capital.

Mr Siddle said Mr Thodey was "ideally placed" to contribute to Ramsay Health Care's growth strategy.

"He brings extensive experience in leadership and management and is a passionate technologist with deep knowledge of transforming businesses and communities," Mr Siddle said.

The appointment, following an extensive search by Korn Ferry, came as non-executive director Patrick Grier stepped down from the board on Thursday. Mr Grier served as chief executive from 1994 to 2008 after joining Ramsay in 1988. He oversaw the successful float of Ramsay Health Care on the stock exchange in 1997 and led a series of acquisitions.

Ramsay earned $8.7 billion in revenue in 2017, and on Thursday the company's chief executive, Craig McNally, reaffirmed its core earnings per share growth target of 8 to 10 per cent for fiscal 2018.

He told the company's annual meeting that affordability of health care remained an issue, but welcomed recent federal government reforms to private health insurance, saying they would help keep premium rises in check next year.

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