The Honourable Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Honourable John Haggie, Minister of Health and Community Services, today announced that Dr. Patrick Parfrey and Sister Elizabeth Davis have been appointed Co-Chairs for the Task Force on Health Care, known as Health Accord NL. Biographies for Dr. Parfrey and Sister Davis can be found in the backgrounder below.
Dedicated to supporting healthy living in Newfoundland and Labrador, Health Accord NL will reimagine the health care system in order to best deliver services to meet the needs of people in communities across the province.
Health Accord NL will focus on the social determinants of health, or the social and economic factors that influence people’s health. The Accord will be developed in consultation with all stakeholders, prioritizing engagement with various groups – including Indigenous leaders and health care professionals.
As outlined in the Mandate Letter to Minister Haggie, Health Accord NL will focus on delivering a 10-Year Health Accord with short, medium, and long-term goals for a health care system that better meets the needs of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
The Provincial Government has controlled health care expenditures, which is the province’s largest annual investment, and the Canadian Institute for Health Information noted last year that Newfoundland and Labrador is a leader in Canada for managing health care expenditures.
Quotes
“Our Government is committed to supporting the well-being of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians of all ages, and improving outcomes. Reimagining what health care means in this province is an important undertaking, and on behalf of the province, I thank Dr. Patrick Parfrey and Sister Elizabeth Davis for volunteering to lead the Task Force on Health Care.”
Honourable Andrew Furey
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
“Dr. Parfrey and Sister Elizabeth will bring a wealth of experience to the Task Force on Health Care. I look forward to working together to find new and innovative ways to deliver health care services to individuals and their families in communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador.”
Honourable John Haggie
Minister of Health and Community Services
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Media contacts
Meghan McCabe
Office of the Premier
709-729-3960
MeghanMcCabe@gov.nl.ca
Kathy Dicks-Peyton
Health and Community Services
709-729-6986, 699-1982
kathydickspeyton@gov.nl.ca
BACKGROUNDER
Biographies of the Co-Chairs of Health Accord NL
Dr. Patrick Parfrey
Dr. Parfrey is a clinical epidemiologist and a John Lewis Paton Distinguished University Professor at Memorial University. He is the clinical lead for Quality of Care NL and Choosing Wisely NL, programs funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Provincial Government. Dr. Parfrey is an officer of the Order of Canada, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
Sister Elizabeth Davis
Sister Elizabeth Davis is Congregational Leader of the Sisters of Mercy of Newfoundland and Labrador. She is the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Gathering Place and a member of the Board for St. Patrick’s Mercy Home. Sister Elizabeth has been an administrator of St. Clare’s Mercy Hospital in St. John’s, and President and CEO of the Health Care Corporation of St. John’s (now Eastern Health). She has been a member of the Medical Council of Canada and the National Board of Medical Examiners in the United States. She has also been a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the Trudeau Foundation, and Dalhousie University’s Management Program for Physicians. Sister Elizabeth is also a part-time faculty member at Memorial University’s Queen’s College in St. John’s.