The Council consists of eight members from across the province and two co-chairs. Co-chairing the Council are Dr. Rosemary Henderson, a physician from Charlottetown, and Mr. Ron Maynard, a dairy farmer from Tyne Valley. The eight other members include: Mary Jane Callaghan of Souris, Manager of Home Care in King’s Region; Diane Collins, a nurse from Montague; Donna Murnaghan of Charlottetown, from the UPEI School of Nursing; Roseanne Sark, Director of Health with the Mi’kmaq Confederacy; Alan Montgomery, a Chartered Accountant from Summerside; Marie-France Thériault, a lawyer from Summerside; Brian Willis of O’Leary, Floor Supervisor of a potato packing plant; and Tammy Chaisson, a medical laboratory technologist from Tignish and president of a provincial union that represents health care workers. A variety of the members bring previous experience in health governance to the table.

“I am pleased to see great representation on the Council and am pleased that they are working so hard on this,” said Minister of Health, Doug Currie. “As I indicated last fall, I believe our future depends on working together as one Island community, with one Island future and one Island health system. That future includes a unified and integrated health care system that provides equitable access to all Islanders. The individuals chosen to be part of this Council have been tasked to recommend a governance model that will work for all Islanders and the health system. I look forward to receiving their recommendations this summer.”

“The diversity and commitment of the Islanders involved in the process will ensure an Island-made governance model that will provide accountability and reflect the values of Islanders,” said Ron Maynard, Co-Chair of the Council. “Good governance provides strategic direction and oversight to the system and a strong governance structure will be critical to fulfilling Government’s vision of One Island Health System.”

“I am very impressed with the interest being expressed in this work by people from across the Island,” said Co-chair of the Council, Dr. Rosemary Henderson. “One of the most important functions of the Council will be the consultation process, where a variety of stakeholders will be encouraged to bring their concerns and ideas to the Council. However, we wish to be clear that we are not tasked with examining the day-to-day operations of the health care system, but rather the high level functions that oversee the system as a whole.”

A call for the public and stakeholder consultations will be announced in the near future.