RVH recognized nationally for good governance

On Wednesday, February 7th, the Conference Board of Canada recognized Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) for "breaking new ground in the search for governance excellence".

As part of the Conference Board of Canada/Spenser Stuart 2007 National Awards in Governance, RVH was the only hospital named amoung the four top Canadian organizations that have "embraced the pursuit of governance excellence and innovation".

RVH has recently made significant changes to its governance model. As directed by a Peer Review in 2005, RVH introduced new corporate bylaws which significantly reduced the size of its board from 26 members to 17. In the past, a large number of RVH directors were appointed to the board by virtue of their election to political office, but now the majority of directors must be elected, using skills based recruitment.

"Hospital boards today must deal with many extremely complex issues. Here at RVH we are facing a severe bed shortage, which impacts the residents' ability to access care, while planning for an expansion which will be the largest capital project in the regions history," said RVH Board Chair Scott Elliot. "This is a pivotal time in RVH's history. It's critical that the hospital's board of directors is small and nimble enough to deal with the many governance issues that come before it, in an efficient and effective manner. I salute the previous board, chaired by Chris Gariepy, which demonstrated great courage and vision in creating an elected, accountable, responsive governance group."

Also included in RVH's new bylaws is a clause which forbids the hospital from submitting a deficit operating plan.

According to Elliot, "RVH's governance story is a success story about how to pay tribute to a proud 108 year old history, while building on the future with a governance model that is based on current best practices."