As the transition from provincially appointed supervisor to hospital board continues for the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, we know there will be additional changes.
But one thing that must not change is the open and transparent approach supervisor Rob Devitt instilled during his time at the hospital.
He took over in September of 2016 after the dysfunction of the tri-board oversight system prevented anything from getting done. The hospital was mired in the red, building up debt to the breaking point.
Devitt helped clean house, stripping down what was in place in top administration and then building it back up in a leaner format. He became the de facto board as well.
When Devitt came on board, things were ugly. And he openly discussed that ugliness.
Past hospital administrations quietly shoved under the proverbial rug anything that didn’t shine. Requests for information prior to changes in privacy legislation were bluntly turned aside with a “we don’t have to do that” attitude.
In short, operations of the CKHA hid behind privacy legislation at every opportunity, even when it didn’t have to.
That culture of secrecy gave hospital staff and the public little faith in the old guard.
What’s happened with Devitt on board is so open it throws the media off guard. He has time and again shone a light into every dark corner of operations and organization at the hospital.
That frank attitude was initially met with skepticism, as he and new hospital president and CEO Lori Marshall have stressed the need for the CKHA to maintain its two-site system, complete with emergency departments, in Chatham and Wallaceburg.
Eventually, the skeptics, seeing reaffirmation after reaffirmation and the addition of various clinics to the Sydenham District Campus in Wallaceburg have been turned into believers.
But the new board is being picked in February – members of the public will succeed Devitt as the overseers of the alliance.
Will they be as open as Devitt? Will Marshall continue with such transparency when Devitt leaves later this spring?
It’s imperative that they do, as faith in the CKHA has all but been restored. One trip up in terms of transparency, and the old doubts will quickly return.
