Board of Directors

Quinte Health Care is governed by a 17-person Board of Directors, made up of 12 volunteer elected Directors and five ex-officio Directors. This team of skilled, experienced and committed members of our community provide essential leadership, stewardship and oversight to Quinte Health Care. The Board's role includes setting the plan for our four interdependent hospitals, monitoring QHC’s ongoing financial health, performance and patient care, and ensuring an effective two-way flow of communication with the public QHC serves.

2013 Advisory Council application form

More Information

Board Meetings
Roles and Responsibilities
Advisory Council of QHC
QHC Corporate By-Laws
Board Policies
Board of Directors' attendance
Individual Director's Self Assessment Questionnaire

QHC 2012/13 Board of Directors

Brian Smith, Chair
Tricia Anderson

Karen Baker
Steve Blakely, Vice Chair
Dr. Norma Charriere, Vice President, Professional Staff Association
Mary Clare Egberts*, President and CEO
John Embregts, Treasurer
Les Hanbury
Darlene O'Farrell
Douglas McGregor
David MacKinnon
John Petrie
Nick Pfeiffer
Katherine Stansfield*, Vice President, Patient Services & Chief Nursing Executive
Dr. Margaret Tromp*, President, Professional Staff Association
Stuart Wright
Dr. Dick Zoutman*, Chief of Staff
*ex-officio (non-voting) Board Member

Tricia Anderson
Ms. Anderson is an executive/senior level advertising and marketing professional with more than 10 years of progressive marketing and financial services experience in marketing/advertising/branding/ communications channel strategy and public relations planning. She has built her own business and has considerable experience in developing strategic marketing plans. Recently, she was an active member of Wells Fargo Financial’s Canadian senior executive team and contributing executive member of its audit, business and credit governing committees. She lives in Quinte West where she has acted as general contractor in the restoration of her century-old farm house east of Stirling.

Karen Baker
Ms. Baker is an Instructor and Program Coordinator for the Accounting Program, School of Business and Management Studies, Loyalist College. She is also the President of Briar Ridge Limited, which owns a group of companies in the commercial and multi-tenant residential real estate sector. Ms. Baker is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Master of Business Administration from Queen’s University and a Master of Arts (Education) from Central Michigan University. An active community volunteer, Ms. Baker has served on the Boards of the Belleville General Hospital Foundation; Rotary Foundation and Rotary Club of Belleville; the United Way of Quinte; and was previously an Advisory Member of Quinte Health Care. Ms. Baker lives in Belleville.

Steve Blakely
Mr. Blakely is an accomplished senior executive with a wealth of financial services industry experience spanning in excess of 35 years. He has a particular interest in leadership and governance and holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors through the Rotman School of Business. Mr. Blakely has extensive senior executive experience and his professional experience includes the following positions: President and Chief Executive Officer of Servus Credit Union, President and CEO of Credit Union Deposit Guarantee Corporation, Vice President Operations of Competix.Com in California, Regional Vice President-Calgary Region for ATB Financial and several senior positions with BMO in Alberta, B.C. and Ontario. His governance experience includes past directorships and committee appointments on the boards of Credit Union Central of Alberta and Credential Financial Inc. Mr. Blakely lives at RR 1 Picton. 


John Embregts
Mr. Embregts retired in July of 2004 as Manager, Quality Assurance for IBM Global Services after 37 years with the company in a variety of technical, sales, marketing, consulting and management roles. His community service includes 10 years on the Board of the Rouge Valley Health System in Greater Toronto where he chaired various committees including finance, quality, operations and strategic planning and served as both treasurer and vice chair. He was a member of the Board of Quinte Health Care from 2007 to 2009, is treasurer of the Board of Northumberland Community Care and has been Vice President of the Brighton Curling Club since 2007. Mr. Embregts lives in Brighton.

Les Hanbury
For over 30 years, Mr. Hanbury worked in the housing industry and spent the last 21 as the CEO and General Manager of the City of Thunder Bay Non-Profit Housing Corporation. In 2005 he retired to pursue other areas of interest and is currently involved in construction, contracting and consulting in the housing sector. Mr. Hanbury has over 30 years sitting on the board of various companies, non-profit service providers and health care providers and spent two years as a director on the Board at St. Joseph's Care Group. It was through this experience he developed strong feelings for the provision of health care in Ontario and is interested in assisting QHC navigate through the changes and challenges that the future will bring. Mr. Hanbury lives in Carrying Place.

Darlene O'Farrell
Ms. O'Farrell is a retired school principal with varied experience in leadership with the education system with the York Region Board of Education. Since retirement Mrs. O'Farrell has sat on community boards which include Maggie's Resource Centre as the Treasurer and Director and the Mental Health Services Hastings Prince Edward County. She has also been very active in supporting health care in North Hastings, joining the North Hastings District Hospital Auxiliary and serving as the President. Additionally, Mrs. O'Farrell has been a member on the North Hastings Fund Development Committee and an Advisory Member of QHC. She currently resides in the Bancroft area.

David MacKinnon
Mr. MacKinnon has extensive health care governance experience, including Chair of West Park Healthcare Centre; member of the governing council of the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons; Director of the Standards Council of Canada; and Director of the Canadian Standards Association. Mr. MacKinnon served as President and CEO of the Ontario Hospital Association from 1996 to 2003 and was previously President of Ortech Corporation, a contract research organization, and President and CEO of Ontario Development Corporation. Mr. MacKinnon holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (honours economics) from Dalhousie University and an MBA from York University. Mr. MacKinnon and his wife Betsy live in Wellington, Prince Edward County.

Douglas McGregor
Mr. McGregor has 24 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, including senior level positions for telecommunications companies in Canada, Europe and the United States. Mr. McGregor holds a Bachelor of Engineering from McMaster University and is a Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He was previously on the Advisory Council of QHC and a member of the Quality of Patient Care Committee of the QHC Board. Mr. McGregor also currently serves as Secretary and Executive Member of the Milford Fair Association Board. He currently resides in Prince Edward County.

John Petrie
For the past 20 years Mr. Petrie has been Director and responsible for Canadian operations for Conway Management Canada, a U.S. based consultancy which helps companies on five continents improve business performance and profitability. As a catalyst for change, he has worked with dozens of companies, including multinationals such as Coca-Cola, Bloomberg and Imperial Oil, in nearly every industry sector. His community involvement includes membership in the Rotary Club of Quinte Sunrise with a particular interest in Camp Trillium. He is an engineering graduate of Queen’s and holds an MBA from McMaster. Mr. Petrie lives at RR1 Carrying Place.

Nick Pfeiffer
Mr. Pfeiffer is a licensed Professional Engineer with 22 years of experience in mechanical engineering, electronics engineering and software development, including 16 years in management positions. Mr. Pfeiffer is currently President and Engineering Manager of Pfeiffer Technologies Inc., a company he founded in 2003 to develop and manufacture clean energy control solutions. Mr. Pfeiffer currently serves on the Board of the Stirling Airport, the Standards Subcommittee of the Professional Engineers of Ontario and the University of the Fraser Valley Program Advisory Committee. He was also previously an Advisory Member of Quinte Health Care and a Member of the QHC Resource Committee. He holds a PhD in engineering from Simon Fraser University and is also a commercial pilot. Mr. Pfeiffer lives in Stirling with his wife and two school-age boys.

Brian Smith
Mr. Smith has more than 35 years of experience in administration, long-term care, financial management, labour relations and planning in the field of community health services. Since 1999 he has served as Director of the John M. Parrott Centre in Napanee. Previous to that he was program supervisor for the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Councillor for the City of Belleville, Administrator of the Quinte Living Centre, personnel and employee relations officer at Trenton Memorial Hospital and assistant administrator at Hastings Manor Home for the Aged. Mr. Smith lives in Belleville.

Stuart Wright
Mr.Wright retired from Intrigna, a Calgary based competitive local exchange carrier, as the Vice President in 2002 to move to the Quinte area. He currently operates a home-based sales management consulting business on a semi-retired basis and is actively involved in the community. As the current Board Chair and pastGovernor of Loyalist College for the past three years, Mr. Wright served as the Chair of the Loyalist Finance, Corporate Service and Governance Standing Committee and as a leader on the Loyalist Capital Campaign. His other community activities include the previous director and trustee for the Foundation of the National Air Force Museum of Canada, director of the Rotary Club of Trenton and member of the Rotary Club of Quinte Sunrise. Mr. Wright's interest is helping to ensure that the health service provided by QHC meets the needs of the community. He currently resides in Carrying Place.