Close up with…

Betty-Lou Souter,
Chair of the NHS Board of Trustees

The Niagara Health System Board of Trustees is made up of volunteers who live and work in Niagara. Each Board member brings unique skills and expertise to this leadership role. The Board is responsible for governing the NHS and providing strategic direction to the Hospital to ensure it meets the health-care needs of the community within the resources that are available to provide services.

Community Board members serve terms of three years, and can serve a maximum of three consecutive three-year terms. They devote a minimum of 10 to 15 hours a month to their Board role and do not receive any remuneration for their work. In addition, the NHS President and CEO, Chief of Staff, and Medical Staff Association President and Vice- President are Ex Officio members of the Board.

Beginning with this inaugural issue, Niagara Health Now will publish a series of question-and-answer profiles on individual members of the NHS Board of Trustees to help our readers get better acquainted with them. This week’s profile is of Trustee Betty- Lou Souter, who is Chair of the Board.

Where do you live?
St. Catharines

Where were you born?
Antrim, Ontario

Number of years living in Niagara:
32 years

Occupation:
Chief Executive Officer, Community Care of St. Catharines & Thorold

What are the greatest rewards from your job?
Being able to make a difference in the lives of others.

What influenced you to become a member of the NHS Board of Trustees?
I wanted to have a greater understanding of the health system so that I could help my clients which are amongst the most vulnerable who navigate the system.

How many years have you served on the NHS Board?
Inaugural member. Previously on St. Catharines 1997-2000.

What is your greatest achievement or reward as a member of the Board?
Groundbreaking for the new local acute care facility for St. Catharines, Thorold and Niagara-on-the-Lake and Walker Family Cancer Centre was perhaps the most gratifying. Other highlights include the 2005 transfer of governance and services with the former Hotel Dieu Hospital to resolve longstanding issues and gaps in the delivery of acute care in St. Catharines.

What is the greatest strength of the NHS?
The commitment of staff and volunteers.

What is its greatest weakness?
Lack of financial resources.

What community causes are closest to your heart?
Poverty, hungry and homeless, vulnerable population, mental health

Other involvement as a member of a volunteer Board, past or present?
Past Chair Ontario Trillium Foundation 1994-1996; Past President Rotary Club of St. Catharines; Past President Ladies Association Multiple Sclerosis; Past President Niagara Community Foundation; Currently serving on Brock University Board of Trustees, Board Chair YMCA Niagara and Board Member for Cancer Care Ontario, the provincial agency responsible for continually improving cancer services across Ontario.

How would you describe yourself to someone who doesn’t know you?
Off the wall!!!! Seriously though, I live my life trying to be a more compassionate and understanding person with every day that passes.

Who inspires you?
My mother inspired me. She taught me the importance of giving back to my community and gave me a strong value system.

What is your greatest personal achievement?
We never do things for recognition but when it happens it is a very wonderful feeling. The Citizen of the Year in 2002 for the City of St. Catharines and the Red Cross Power of Humanity Award 2007 stand out in my mind. «