Stevenson memorial hospital

Safeguarding your most valuable community asset

By Brian Lockhart

"The reality is, the hospital is owned and operated for the community by the community," says Scott Anderson, Chair of the Stevenson Memorial Hospital Board of Directors. "At the highest level, we have a vision and strategic plan. This is a Board of Directors that is passionate and cares deeply about providing the hospital services most needed by the community at the highest level of quality."
There is a fairly common misconception that government maintains the responsibility for running a hospital since the operating funding is provided at the provincial level.
Although government regulations do apply, it is the Board of Directors who steers the course and makes the decisions that ultimately guide the path for success.
At Stevenson, there are 12 elected members on the Board. All are residents within the area serviced by the hospital, and each member brings personal and business experience to the table.
In addition, there are four members representing the hospital management and medical staff and one member each from the Hospital Auxiliary and Hospital Foundation.
"We are responsible for 'duty of care' to employees and patients," Mr. Anderson explains. "Our Board has all sorts of experience including health and safety, quality assurance, operations, communications, financial and legal, to name a few. We have a comprehensive spread of people."
For Board member Jim Poling, experience as a journalist with The Canadian Press news agency brings a perspective that goes beyond the walls of the hospital building.
"You have to communicate with the community," Mr. Poling explains. "It is important to let people know what is available at Stevenson and assure them that we are listening to what it is that they need and expect from their hospital."
As the Chair of the Communications Committee, he is committed to outreach and informing the public of what is happening at the hospital.
"We represent the community," he says, adding that people want the hospital to "run effectively." In addition to the Communications Committee, there are groups committed to quality assurance, human resources, finance and governance.
These committees, with input from hospital staff and management and the public, select the best course of action as well as determine how funds are directed and best used for the current needs of the hospital.
Regulations governing public funding health care facilities dictate that the hospital cannot run a deficit. The books have to balance at the end of the fiscal year.
Hospital CEO Gary Ryan effectively runs the hospital and formally reports to the Board as an administrator.
As a Board member, he actively participates in working to achieve the goals that are in place to keep the hospital up-to-date and running smoothly.
"They are my sounding board," he says of his colleagues on the Board of Directors, "and they give me information that allows me to see the bigger picture." The 'bigger picture' is the result of input the Board receives from the community.
"We have information sharing updates on initiatives," he says of the monthly meetings. "We set goals at the beginning of the year." The Board has ''two direct reports" he explains, the CEO and a Chief of Staff who is in charge of medical staff and policies.
Becoming involved with the hospital through volunteering or fundraising and learning how the hospital works is the first step toward becoming a Board member.
"At the end of the day," Mr. Ryan explains, "the ability of your hospital depends on the skills of the Board of Directors."