Lessons From the Martine Bouchard School of Leadership

My father died at the end of 1992.  He essentially spent the last three months at St. Boniface Hospital.  Our family was essentially there all the time so we interacted with a lot of staff in a lot of departments in all shifts.  We never had one concern.  In fact, even thinking about the excellent compassionate care that he received brings tears to my eyes. They did more than take care of my dad, they took care of all of us.  This was decades before the words "person-centred care" were part of the vocabulary of health care workers. 

A few years ago, my mother was briefly at St. Boniface Hospital after a cardiac event.  I was exceptionally grateful for the excellence and compassion that we encountered. 

I have many friends who work at the hospital and I know they are continuing to provide a high standard of care.  They also report a strong ethical treatment of them as employees. 

It pains me that my idyllic vision of St. Boniface Hospital has now been tainted by the actions of their CEO Martine Bouchard.  Apparently, she lives in Quebec and happened to be there in March when the stay-at-home order was issued.  So, she continued her work from Quebec.  I find that a little questionable but I wasn't overly concerned.  She was a victim of circumstances and she was doing the best she could. I'm sure the remaining staff rose to the occasion

Then, she returned to Winnipeg and went right to work, without adhering to the mandatory 14 day quarantine period.  Since the hospital survived for months of her leadership by phone, there is no reason why she couldn't have done it another 14 days from Winnipeg.  Apparently, she didn't think the rules applied to her.  It was assured that she would not have direct patient contact.

At this point, she was not a victim of extraordinary circumstances, she was making a choice.  A choice that put people at risk.  That is not leadership.  That is an example of white privilege.  For whatever reason, she thought she was special and the rules didn't apply to her.

What a horrible example of leadership.  I hope the Board of the Hospital have some difficult questions for her. 

The sad thing is that a hospital is not like a jewelry shop.  If the wife of a jeweler goes on a viral rant that is not in tune with your values, you can make a choice not to shop there anymore.  Unfortunately, sick people don't have the option of taking their business elsewhere. 

But, I know I will no longer support the St. Boniface Hospital Foundation or the Tri-Hospital Lottery. That doesn't feel right for me but I have to until they get a leader who demonstrates leadership.