Three members of the now-defunct Burntwood Regional Health Authority's senior executive staff are now part of the senior management team of the Northern Regional Health Authority (NRHA) - created when the Burntwood and NOR-MAN regional health authorities were amalgamated by the provincial government - but former BRHA chief executive officer Gloria King is not one of them as she retired earlier this month.
Helga Bryant, CEO of the NRHA, told the Thompson Citizen that staff were informed of King's retirement by a notice that went out to staff in the second week of August.
Along with Bryant, who was named CEO of the combined health authority at the beginning of June and works out of Flin Flon, the NRHA's senior management team includes Dr. Hussam Azzam, (vice president, medical services and chief medical office, Rajinder Thethy (vice president, corporate services and chief financial officer) and Rusty Beardy (vice president, aboriginal health services) all of whom are based in Thompson, along with Wanda Reader (vice president and chief human resources officer), who is also based in Flin Flon. Two senior management positions - vice president, primary health care and community services, and vice president and chief nursing officer - remain vacant. Those two positions will also be based in Flin Flon.
Prior to the amalgamation, Azzam was the vice president of medical services for the BRHA, while Beardy was the vice president of aboriginal services and Thethy was the chief financial and operating officer. The BRHA's other senior executives were Marion Ellis (vice president, acute care and chief nursing officer), Paul Therrien (chief human resources officer) and Dr. Randy Gesell, medical officer of health.
At the time of Bryant's appointment as CEO, the Citizen reported that King would reportedly stay on in Thompson and be in charge of Thompson and the surrounding area for the new health authority, reporting to Bryant in Flin Flon, although it was unknown at that time what her new title would be.
Previously the vice president of health services and the chief nursing officer for the BRHA under Marie O'Neill, who served as the organization's CEO for a little over a year before resigning in March 2008 to become associate deputy minister of primary care and healthy living at Manitoba Health, King became acting CEO in March 2008 and was offered the job on a permanent basis, effective May 1, 2008, by the BRHA's board of directors on April 24, 2008.
A board of directors for the NRHA was appointed in late June with Doug Lauvstad of The Pas named chair. The other 14 members are vice-chair Lloyd Flett of Norway House, Cal Huntley of Flin Flon, Nickel Belt News columnist Marc Jackson of Snow Lake, Donna Champagne of Denare Beach, Sask., Glen (Norman) Ross of The Pas, Edith Turner of Cormorant, Anne Thompson of Lynn Lake, Jasper Robinson of Thompson, Cristo Speiss of Norway House, Hilda Dysart of South Indian Lake, Frederick (Dale) Seddon of Leaf Rapids, Dorothy (Nora) Ross of Thompson, Frances Hall of Wabowden and Blaine Winters of Cranberry Portage.
