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Current Directors | Past Directors

Biographies current at time of Board term.

Mr. Gerry Armstrong
Board Term: 2001-2003

Gerry Armstrong Gerry Armstrong was appointed Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Advanced Education in February 1998. He previously served as Deputy Minister of Finance and Corporate Relations, Forests, Environment and Provincial Secretary. Mr. Armstrong has a Masters degree in economic theory from Northwestern University in Chicago and an honours BA in Economics from the University of British Columbia. He brings almost 30 years of government experience to his work at the Ministry of Advanced Education.

Dr. Penny Ballem
Board Term: 2001-2006

Dr. Penny Ballem Dr. Penny Ballem is Deputy Minister of the BC Ministry of Health. She was appointed Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Health Services in August 2001 and in November 2001 became Deputy Minister for both Health Services and Health Planning. Previously she has served as a special advisor to the two ministries. For the past two decades, Dr. Ballem has been a health administrator, an academic physician and advisor to health policy makers both provincially and nationally. She holds a medical degree, with specialist training in hematology, from the University of British Columbia and has been a clinical associate professor in the UBC Faculty of Medicine since 1992. In the period from 1995 until her appointment as special advisor, she was Vice President at Children's & Women's Health Centre of British Columbia, with responsibility for the largest maternity hospital service in the country. Dr. Ballem is widely recognized for her work as an educator, researcher and advocate for women's health issues.

Don Fast
Board Term: 2007-2008

Don Fast Don Fast was appointed Deputy Minister of Economic Development for the Government of British Columbia in May 2006. Having worked for three provinces and the federal government, Mr Fast has extensive intergovernmental experience and international relations experience, and is an experienced leader in developing cooperative relationships between government and business to accomplish mutually beneficial goals. Previously, Mr. Fast was the Regional Director General, Pacific and Yukon Region, Environment Canada; Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Environment and Lands Headquarters for the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks; and Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Department in BC. Mr. Fast also worked for the Saskatchewan government in various senior management positions, including Director of federal/provincial relations for the Premier of Saskatchewan.

Kenneth Galbraith
Board Term: 2001-2004

Kenneth Galbraith Ken Galbraith is President of Gigha Consulting Ltd., a technology consulting and investment management company. Previously, he spent more than 13 years in senior management with QLT Inc., with responsibilities that included raising in excess of $500 million to fund QLT's research, negotiating partnerships and alliances with academic researchers and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies throughout the world. Mr. Galbraith is director of the Fraser Health Authority. He is also on the Board of Directors of several public and private companies located in BC, including Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Stressgen Biotechnologies Corp., Micrologix Biotechnology Inc., Active Pass Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Kinetek Biotechnologies, Inc., and contributes a significant portion of his time to charitable and community activities. He holds a BCom (Honours) degree from UBC and was admitted as a Chartered Accountant in BC in 1988.

Dr. Lorraine Greaves
Board Term: 2001-2007

Dr. Lorraine Greaves Dr. Lorraine Greaves is the Executive Director of the British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women's Health. The organization is one of five National Centres of Excellence sponsored by the Women's Health Bureau of Health Canada to improve the health of women by fostering innovative, multi-disciplinary research on health policy, women's health initiatives, and women-centred health services and programs. She is also Director, Women's Health Research Development for Women's & Family Health Programs at Children's & Women's Health Centre of British Columbia. Dr. Greaves is a sociologist, researcher, writer, educator and speaker on women's health issues, particularly tobacco use, addictions, health effects of violence and the economic costing of women's health issues. She was Director of the Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children in London, Ontario and served as a member of the Interim Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

Mrs. Nancy Harrison
Board Term: 2001-2002

Nancy Harrison Nancy Harrison is Senior Vice-President at Ventures West. She joined the company in 1993, where she has specialized in investing and networking in the life sciences area. Before that, she worked as an engineer with Shell Canada and consultant with ESSO in Eastern Europe. Mrs. Harrison serves on the boards of Caprion Pharmaceuticals Inc., GlycoDesign Inc., Kinetek Pharmaceuticals Inc., InterOmex and Synapse Technologies Inc. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours) from Queen's University (1987) and a MBA from McGill University (1993). Mrs. Harrison also volunteers her time to two of Canada's Centres of Excellence Networks: the Protein Engineering NCE (PENCE) and the Canadian Arthritis Network (CAN).

Ms. Leah Hollins
Board Term: 2001

Leah Hollins was appointed Deputy Minister of the BC Ministry of Health in November 1999. She previously served as Associate Deputy Minister of Health and has held a number of positions and portfolios in the Ministry, including service as a nursing consultant, regional team director with Hospital Programs and as a public health nursing manager for the provincial head injury and nursing respite program. Ms. Hollins holds a Diploma in Public Health, a Baccalaureate degree in nursing and a Masters of Business Administration in Health Care.

Dr. William Hunter
Board Term: 2001-2007

Dr. William Hunter Dr. William Hunter, co-founder of Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc., was elected Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in 1997 having served as Chief Scientific Officer for five years. Under his leadership, Angiotech achieved significant growth which included corporate alliances with four multinational medical device companies, listings on the Toronto Stock Exchange and NASDAQ National Market, raised financing of over CCN $190 million, and earned the position as the TSE 300's number two performer in share appreciation for the year 2000. Dr. Hunter holds a BSc from McGill University, and an MSc and MD from the University of British Columbia. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Arthritis Network and is currently Chair of Active Pass Pharmaceuticals. He was honoured by the BC Biotechnology Alliance (BC Biotech) with their Vision and Leadership Award for 2002.

Craig Knight
Board Term: 2006-2007

Craig Knight Craig Knight was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister for Strategic Policy, Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations with the BC Ministry of Health in January 2004. Mr. Knight has almost two decades of experience with the BC Ministry of Health. Prior to his current position, he was Executive Director for the Health Human Resources Planning Branch in the Ministry of Health Planning, Director of Intergovernmental Relations at the Ministry, a business analyst with the Ministry's Strategic Management Services, and a clinical counsellor for Alcohol and Drug Service. In addition to his experience with the Ministry, he has held positions as a clinical trainer and area manager for the Northern Vancouver Island Region of Alcohol and Drug Services. He also developed a provincial program to address gambling addiction. Mr. Knight holds an undergraduate degree in psychology and a Master of Divinity degree. Mr. Knight was a Lutheran clergyman for 13 years before joining the BC Ministry of Health.

Mr. Donald Leitch
Board Term: 2001-2003

Donald Leitch was appointed Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Competition, Science and Enterprise in June 2001. The Ministry is the lead provincial agency for promoting economic development throughout the province, and for creating and protecting jobs across British Columbia.

Ms. Anne McFarlane
Board Term: 2002-2003

Anne McFarlane Anne McFarlane was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister, Planning, Policy and Legislation within the BC Ministry of Health Planning in November 2001. Ms. McFarlane holds an MSC in epidemiology and an MA in philosophy. She has 23 years of experience working in the Ministries of Education, Finance, Health and Social Services for the governments of British Columbia and Saskatchewan. Her previous positions within the BC Ministry of Health included Director of Pharmacare, Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Policy, Planning and Intergovernmental Relations and Executive Financial Officer. Ms. McFarlane is a member of the Advisory Board of the Canadian Institute of Health Services and Policy Research, a member of the Medical Services Commission, a member of the Providence Health Care Board of Directors and the Chair of the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Advisory Committee on Health Services.

Gordon Macatee
Board Term: 2007-2008

Gordon Macatee Gordon Macatee was appointed Deputy Minister of Health for the Government of British Columbia in June 2006. Prior to this appointment, Mr. Macatee was Deputy Minister of Labour and Citizens' Services; Chair of BC Buildings Corporation; Deputy Minister of Water, Land and Air Protection; and Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries. Mr. Macatee has also been acting vice-president of the BC Trade Development Corporation, a commissioner on the Agricultural Land Commission, a director on the board of Land and Water BC Corporation, and a member of the BC Wine Institute.
Dr. Patricia Petryshen
Board Term: 2004-2006

Dr. Patricia Petryshen Dr. Patricia Petryshen was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister, Performance Management and Improvement Division, BC Ministry of Health, effective January 1, 2004. Dr. Petryshen has been the Executive Vice-President of Programs, Hospital Relations and Chief Nursing Officer at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto and has held senior leadership positions in large teaching and community hospitals in Ontario. As well, she has held faculty positions including Associate Professor at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Nursing and a cross-appointment to Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine. Dr. Petryshen holds a Doctorate in Epidemiology from the University of Western Ontario and a Master's in Nursing from University of British Columbia. She has published widely and has conducted funded research with a focus on evaluation of clinical outcomes. Dr. Petryshen has chaired provincial and national committees, boards, and professional associations and is a recognized leader and acknowledged expert in the field of health care and performance measurement.

Dr. Indira Samarasekera
Board Term: 2001-2005

Dr. Indira Samarasekera Dr. Indira Samarasekera was appointed Vice President Research at the University of British Columbia in May 2000. A metallurgical engineer, who holds the UBC Dofasco Chair in Advanced Steel Processing, Dr. Samarasekera's expertise in heat transfer and stress analysis has led her to research a number of processes with a major emphasis on the continuous casting and hot rolling of steel, and the growth of single crystals for electronic devices. In recognition of her research, Dr. Samarasekera and co-workers received the Robert W. Hunt and Charles H. Herty Best Paper awards from the Iron and Steel Society of the AIME, the Williams and the Ablett Prizes from the Materials Society in Great Britain, and the Extraction and Processing Technology Award of the TMS. She has also been awarded the Killam Prize and the McDowell Medal by the University of British Columbia for research excellence, an E.W.R. Steacie Fellowship by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the B.C. Science Council Award for New Frontiers in Research. In July 2002, Dr. Samarasekera received the Order of Canada.

Dr. Philip Steenkamp
Board Term: 2003-2005

Dr. Philip Steenkamp Dr. Philip Steenkamp was appointed Deputy Minister for Strategic Policy and Social Development, Office of the Premier, in June 2005. Dr. Steenkamp served as Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Advanced Education from October 2003 until June 2005. He was Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs from November 1998 until June 2001, when he was appointed Deputy Minister of the Treaty Negotiations Office. Dr. Steenkamp has an MA and a PhD from Queen's University in Kingston. He was on faculty at Queen's and the University of Victoria for a number of years.

Dr. Simon Sutcliffe
Board Term: 2001-2008

Dr. Simon Sutcliffe Dr. Simon Sutcliffe was appointed President of the BC Cancer Agency (BCCA) in October 2000. He is a member of a number of National Cancer Institutes of Canada (NCIC) and Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) committees including, the NCIC Clinical Trials Committee; NCIC Advisory Committee on Cancer Control; NCIC/CCS Working Groups on Economic Analysis of Clinical Trials; Cancer Information Services; Synoptic Reporting in Pathology; and SCRN/CTG Program Development. He chaired the NCIC National Medical Advisory Committee and was on the CCS National Board of Directors. In 2002 he was named to the Board of Genome British Columbia. Dr Sutcliffe has published extensively in the areas of radiation and medical oncology as applied to the treatment of lymphoma, leukemia and endocrine malignancies, fertility and gonadal function in cancer patients, and cellular immuno-deficiency and immuno-modulation in cancer.

Mr. John Tegenfeldt
Board Term: 2001

John Tegenfeldt John Tegenfeldt was appointed Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Health Planning in June 2001. Mr. Tegenfeldt received his Masters degree in Health Administration (MHA) from the University of Minnesota and started his health career in British Columbia in 1974. His hospital experience includes several years at the Vancouver General Hospital, followed by appointments as the first CEO of B.C.'s Children's Hospital and as the first CEO of the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board, international health care experience in China, and, most recently, CEO of the Tzu Chi Institute for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Mr. Tegenfeldt was a member of the Coalition for Health Research in British Columbia.

Dr. Andrew Wilkinson
Board Term: 2003-2006

Dr. Andrew Wilkinson Dr. Andrew Wilkinson is Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Economic Development. Dr. Wilkinson was appointed Deputy Minister for the BC Ministry of Competition, Science and Enterprise in April 2003, following two years as Deputy Minister for Intergovernmental Relations. He holds law degrees from Oxford University (1982) and Dalhousie University (1987) and completed his MD in 1984 from the University of Alberta. He worked as a doctor in a number of British Columbia communities and served as a Medical Health Officer with the Vancouver Health Department. In 1994, Dr. Wilkinson returned to legal practice in Vancouver, and gained extensive experience as a lawyer at all levels of the court system, including the Supreme Court of Canada. He also served as President of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association from 1993 to 1995.

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Last updated October 1, 2008
A Legacy of Health for the Province of British Columbia
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