MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Dear Colleagues:
A
Steven Bodley, MD
College President
In all of these efforts,
the CPSO has stood
firmly for the interests
of the public
s I write this, I am
only a couple of
weeks away from the
end of my term as
President of the CPSO. I am
also completing my ninth and
final year on Council and, as
such, the opportunity presents
itself to reflect on the evolution
of the College over that period.
During my time around the
table, Council has led a number
of initiatives – we developed
steps to better protect patients
from sexual abuse; took the
lead in developing a MAID
implementation process; and
responded to the opioid crisis by
working to ensure that physi-
cians have the resources they
need to prescribe safely. In all
of these efforts, the CPSO has
stood firmly for the interests of
the public, and that will remain
our focus as we move forward.
One of my greatest pleasures
over the last year was to chair
the committee that selected Dr.
Nancy Whitmore from a field of
extremely strong candidates to
take on the job of Registrar and
CEO. Leading an organization
of the size, scope and impor-
tance of the College is a formi-
dable task.
Nancy’s first six months have
been characterized by a mea-
sured review of our work and she
has moved quickly to revitalize
a number of areas of our core
business. Her first steps have
been bold and visionary. She has
tapped into the wealth of experi-
ence of our staff. She has also
connected with the physicians
of the province with an enthu-
siasm that will only further our
mandate of public protection in
strong and practical ways.
The work of Council at the
CPSO will evolve as well, with
changes to our governance struc-
ture in our future.
What is the work of gover-
nance? Governing councils
provide high level oversight, set
the strategic plan, and ensure
fiscal accountability. To quote
Linda Rothstein, an expert in
governance, it is the role of a
Board to be “nose in and hands
off” the organization.
ISSUE 4, 2018 DIALOGUE
5