Rural & Nothern Health Care Panel Bios
Click here for article regarding announcement of members selected for the Rural & Northern Health Care Panel, July 28th, 2009
Members of Ontario’s Rural and Northern Health Care Panel
July 28, 2009
Hal Fjeldsted (Chair) – Kirkland Lake
Hal Fjeldsted has been the CEO of the Kirkland and District Hospital since 2000. Prior to this, Hal was the CEO of the Red Lake Margaret Cochenour Memorial Hospital for 10 years. Mr. Fjeldsted also has extensive experience in working with the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA). In addition to being a member of the OHA Board since 2003, his current roles with the OHA include: Chair of the OHA Governance Committee, Chair of the Governance Best Practice Review Sub-Committee and a member of the OHA Strategic Planning Task Force and the Rural and Northern Access to Care Working Group. From 2005 to 2008 Hal was the Chair of OHA Region 1 representing Northern Hospitals.
Brian Bildfell – Essex-Windsor
Brian Bildfell is Chief of Essex-Windsor Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Previously, Brian spent 25 years with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, 15 of which he spent in the Emergency Health Services Division and the last 10 in the Long-Term Care Division.
Jocelyn Blais – Hearst, Northeast Ontario
Jocelyn Blais is the project manager for Recruitment of Health Service Professionals, a committee in the Town of Hearst that includes the municipality and the local hospital. Mr. Blais also organized the last Francophone Health Summit in Timmins on behalf of the two Northern French Language Health Services Network.
Lynn Brown – Fort Erie
Lynn Brown is a Nurse Practitioner in the Town of Fort Erie and brings 31 years of nursing experience to her practice. She has educational and work experience in a broad range of fields including: mental health and psychology, long-term care, gerontology and psychogeriatrics with a specialization in dementia. Lynn was also the panel Director of Nursing for the Region of Niagara for five years, starting in 1994. In addition to being a member of faculty at McMaster University, she also worked in the Niagara Regional Public Health department as a manager in the school program, and as a Nurse Practitioner in the Sexual Health Program.
Mike Brown – Algoma-Manitoulin
Mike Brown, MPP for Algoma-Manitoulin, is currently the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry, a member of the Standing Committee on Government Agencies and a member of the Cabinet Committee on Legislation and Regulations. MPP Brown has served as the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation, Speaker of the 38th Parliament, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Natural Resources, and Chair of the Cabinet Committee on Education. Prior to entering provincial politics, MPP Brown was the deputy mayor of Gore Bay and President of the Manitoulin Municipal Association.
Margret Comack – North Perth
Margret Comack has been the CEO at the Listowel Wingham Hospitals Alliance for 10 years, in addition to being the current Chair of the North Perth Family Health Team and Vice Chair of the North Huron Family Health Team. Ms. Comack was also a member of the Ontario Hospital Association Board for five years (2000 – 2005). She was also the Acting Executive Director of the North Perth Family Health Team from November 2008 to April 2009.
Sheri Doxtator – Toronto
Sheri Doxtator has worked alongside some well-known First Nations leaders, leaders in science and within the health research field, including the Can-Am Indian Friendship Centre, Bank of Montreal, Southern First Nations Secretariat, London Health Sciences Centre, National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation and the Association of Iroquois and Allied Indians. Ms. Doxtator is a citizen of the Iroquois Confederacy born into the Oneida Nation of the Thames and A’nó:wal (Turtle) clan. She also sits on the elected council for Oneida. Most recently, Ms. Doxtator accepted the position of the Aboriginal Health Access Centre Project Manager for the Association of Ontario Health Centres.
Kathy Faries – James Bay/Weeneebayko
Kathy Faries has been a nurse for 25 years, and spent the past five years working as a Nurse Practitioner in Moose Factory and also for the North Shore Tribal Council in Northern Ontario. Ms. Faries obtained her BNSc in 1984 and her NP certificate in 1993 from Queen’s University. She was born and raised in Moose Factory and is both a member and councillor of the Moose Cree First Nation.
Kelly Isfan – Campbellford
Kelly Isfan is currently the President and CEO of Campbellford Memorial Hospital. Prior to moving to Campbellford, she was the CEO at the Atikokan General Hospital, and has led other health care organizations in the long-term care and community care sectors in Ontario, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. In her current position Ms. Isfan serves on a number of provincial committees such as the Ontario Hospital Association’s Small Rural and Northern Provincial Leadership Council and the Joint Policy & Planning Committee’s Accountability Committee. She is now a board member of the Trent Hills Family Health Team.
Carol Mitchell – Huron-Bruce
Carol Mitchell, MPP for Huron-Bruce, is the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Chair of the Liberal Caucus. MPP Mitchell also sits on the Standing Committee on General Government and is a member of the Liberal Rural Caucus.
Dr. Terry O’Driscoll – Sioux Lookout
Dr. Terry O’Driscoll came to Sioux Lookout in 1982 and practices as a full spectrum family physician and clinical preceptor for the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. Dr. O’Driscoll has provided leadership on numerous boards and committees, including chief of staff at Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre, co-chair of the Ontario Maternity Care Expert Panel and past president of the Ontario College of Family Physicians.
Raymond Pong – Sudbury/Northeast Ontario
Raymond Pong is the Research Director of the Centre for Rural and Northern Health Research and a Professor at the School of Rural and Northern Health and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Laurentian University. Mr. Pong also teaches in the graduate program of the School of Nursing and is a Principal of the Ontario Training Centre in Health Services and Policy Research. He also has many years of experience in public service (in Alberta and Ontario).
Doug Reycraft – Municipality of Southwest Middlesex
Former Member of Provincial Parliament, Doug Reycraft was first elected to the Ontario legislature in 1985. He was next elected mayor of Southwest Middlesex in 2000. Mr. Reycraft has also served as Chair on the London-Middlesex Board of Health.
Gerry Rowlands – Tillsonburg
Gerry Rowlands is currently an emergency room physician at Tillsonburg District Hospital and has been practicing since 1979. Mr. Rowlands has a full rural practice, which includes house calls, emergency room coverage, in-hospital coverage, minor surgery and obstetrics. Mr. Rowlands was president of the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) from 1996 to 1997 and president of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) from 2005 to 2006.
Donna Williams – Balmerton/Northwest Ontario
Donna Williams has been part of the Keewaytinook Okimakanak Telemedicine (KOTM) team since 2001. Ms. Williams works as a Telemedicine Program Manager and is a registered nurse.
