Board Reconstitution Underway at Grey Bruce Public Health as Provincial Oversight Continues
Special Advisors to Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health say appointing bodies will use a skills matrix to guide new board selections following last year’s provincial takeover.
The province has released a fourth update from the Special Advisors to Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health regarding the ongoing governance transition at Grey Bruce Public Health. The update outlines the next step in reconstituting the Board of Health, using a finalized skills matrix to guide new appointments.
According to the February 4 update from Dr. Eileen de Villa and Jim Pine, the skills matrix was finalized during a meeting with governance partners on January 23. Over the next five to six weeks, the appointing bodies for the Board of Health will use this matrix to assess potential members.
The matrix identifies 16 core competencies that a well-functioning board should possess collectively. These include areas such as financial oversight, legal knowledge, public health expertise, and Indigenous relations. No one appointee is expected to meet all the criteria individually.
The update describes the skills matrix as “a proven governance tool to support board excellence and organizational success” and a key part of the broader Action Plan being developed in response to the province’s independent assessment of the health unit.
The goal, according to the Special Advisors, is to support the restoration of local accountability while maintaining operational stability.
The Grey Bruce Health Unit remains under provincial oversight. On August 14, 2025, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, invoked section 77.1 of the Health Protection and Promotion Act to temporarily assume the powers of the Board of Health, following an independent review conducted under section 82 of the same Act.
The Ministry of Health has not released the assessment report that prompted the intervention.
The governance shift followed the August removal of seven elected municipal representatives from the Board of Health. At the time, both Grey and Bruce counties stated they were not consulted in advance and had only learned of the change through letters sent to affected members.
The province later confirmed that the report had been delivered to the board chair, with a directive to develop a detailed Action Plan to address its findings.
In December 2025, the Ministry accepted the finalized Action Plan, which was developed in consultation with Grey and Bruce counties. The skills matrix endorsed in that process is now in use to evaluate future board members.
The Special Advisors also acknowledged the ongoing work of Grey Bruce Health Unit staff, particularly their role in developing the next strategic plan.
Public interest in the governance of the health unit remains high. A letter to the editor published by Owen Sound Current in August 2025 called for full transparency regarding the unreleased provincial assessment.
“The residents of Grey Bruce support the health unit through their tax dollars, both locally and provincially. We deserve to understand the whole picture here, given the seriousness of the situation,” wrote Cathy Moore Coburn, a councillor in the Township of Georgian Bluffs and former public health nurse.
In a reader poll conducted by Owen Sound Current in November 2025, 96% of 254 respondents said it was important that the Ministry release the audit report. Of those, 83 percent rated it “very” important.
To date, the Ministry has not released the report. A freedom of information request by Owen Sound Current was denied, and mediation by the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario is underway.
The timeline for restoring full local governance remains unclear. Dr. Moore continues to exercise the powers of the Board of Health, supported by the Special Advisors.
Owen Sound Current will continue to report on developments in this ongoing story.
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