The president and CEO of the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital (CGMH) announced today she will be retiring this spring.
Norah Holder was first named to the lead role in 2017. She started working for the local hospital in 2009 as the vice president of patient services and chief nursing executive. Holder holds a bachelor of science in nursing and a master's degree in nursing. She began her nursing career at the Hospital for Sick Children, working in the neonatal intensive care unit and operating rooms. She held senior administrative positions at Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital and taught nursing at Georgian College.
“I have had the great privilege of working in health care and enjoyed a tremendously fulfilling career focused upon improving the health and well-being of patients, families, institutions, and communities," stated Holder in a news release. "I will deeply miss the employees, physicians, midwives and volunteers who make CGMH a caring institution, exemplify our core values and who provide our South Georgian Bay community such excellence in care."
Holder will remain in her role for the on-site survey for the hospital's accreditation, which occurs in March 2022, and will continue to work on the hospital's redevelopment application.
“Ms. Holder’s passion and commitment to CGMH and the South Georgian Bay community as CEO over the past five years has been exemplary. She has always lived our values and is dedicated to working with our people, creating partnerships and supporting our patients through every step of their CGMH experience,” stated Lesley Paul, CGMH board chair, in a news release.
A news release from the hospital credit's Holder with a list of accomplishments:
- Providing strong Advocacy with Ontario Health and the Ministry of Health to successfully eliminate three decades of working capital deficit and establish a balanced hospital budget.
- Working collaboratively and strategically with community partners to develop, implement and co-lead the South Georgian Bay Alliance and the South Georgian Bay Ontario Health Team (SGB OHT).
- Working progressively on the Hospital Redevelopment file and fostering strong relationships with the Ministry of Health, Capital Branch and Municipal Partners, which lead to a Stage 1 approval announcement in August 2021.
- Leading the organization to a successful result of Accredited with Exemplary Standing from Accreditation Canada in 2017
- Leading multiple stakeholders in the collaborative development and implementation of a North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network (NSM LHIN) wide Musculoskeletal (MSK) program and Integration proposal, which has experienced much growth over the years.
- Working with community organizations to bring innovative community-based partnership programs to life, such as the South Georgian Bay Mental Health Response Unit (MHRU) and the Healthy Babies, Happy Families clinic.
- Facilitating internal clinical redevelopment projects, resulting in enhanced patient flow, patient safety and improved work environments. Projects include Endoscopy, Dialysis, Inpatient space, the Emergency department inclusive of a new adjacent See and Treat Department, the OR, the Medical Device Reprocessing department, Ambulatory Care Wing, and significant expansion of the pharmacy department.
Holder will remain with CGMH until May 15, 2022. Meanwhile, the board of directors will lead the search for her successor.
“The board will greatly miss Ms. Holder and would like to especially acknowledge her key role over the last 20 months in ensuring the safety of our patients, employees and credentialed staff through the COVID-19 pandemic. She demonstrated foresight and strong leadership, all while ensuring that decision making was based on a collaborative and informed approach,” said Paul.
