For Jennifer MacKenzie, healthcare is bred in the bone.

The daughter of a doctor and a nurse, Jennifer followed down the healing professional pathway with a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. Exchanging the Atlantic for Pacific, the Cape Breton native later moved to Victoria where she obtained her MBA.

In the years since, Jennifer has remained focused on healthcare, working in business development for VCH in the health authority’s early days. Later, she moved to PHSA where — over the past decade — she has plied her expertise in areas of strategic and operational planning, organizational performance, project and change management, and business process redesign.  Most recently, Jennifer served as PHSA’s vice president of strategic planning, transformational support and innovation.

On Monday, Jennifer took up residence in Richmond Hospital’s Westminster Tower as VHC Richmond’s new Chief Operating Office, replacing Mike Nader who assumed the COO role in Coastal last spring.

Here’s a short Q&A about Jennifer and what she hopes to accomplish in Richmond’s Community of Care:

Q: What attracted you to Richmond?

A:  Over the past decade I have worked with large, academic organizations, such as the BC Cancer Agency and BC Children’s Hospital, to support their planning and renewal processes. As a result, I’ve developed a focus that I refer to as “a mile wide and an inch deep.” In Richmond, I am looking forward to changing that up. I plan to go “a mile deep and an inch wide” to learn how health care is delivered in this community of care. I am a systems thinker and passionate about making transitions across the continuum of care as seamless for our clients and patients as possible. And I believe we’re in an enviable position to achieve this. Richmond’s entire continuum of care is unique in that it is contained by its geography. By continuing to work to create service and program linkages, and smooth handovers from Acute to Community, I believe we are well positioned in Richmond to reduce the number of sentinel events and wait times experienced by our patients and clients. On a personal note, I came to BC because I love the outdoors, and wanted to live in a city that was progressive, not aggressive. What I’ve missed most, though, is working in a place that has a well-developed sense of community. I’m hoping to find that in Richmond.

Q: How long do you plan to stay here?

A: This is the one question that I’ve been asked over and over. Before I answer it, you need to know a little bit more about me and my work life. I remained with my previous organization – in evolving roles — for 12 years. Similarly, the work I want to accomplish in Richmond can’t be completed over the coming weeks and months. I am here for the long haul. I want to help create a truly great organization that services patients and clients wholly and respectfully. I want Richmond to be a place where staff and physicians are proud to work, and am certain we can achieve this vision together by delving deep into the root causes of inefficiency and ineffectiveness. Rather than develop band-aid solutions, I intend to engage staff and others to think about ways they can improve their own work. You know your work best; what bogs you down and what could free you up. I am the one whose responsibility it will be to ensure you are adequately supported – with the skills you need — so that you may give your collective best to our patients and clients every day. It will take time to accomplish this.

Q: What are your goals for the coming months?

A: I am values-driven so VCH’s People First philosophy resonates with me. To develop a deep understanding of care and services we provide, I’ll need to listen, listen, listen – to our staff and patients, community and Foundation partners, to our colleagues across the health authority. Although data will partially inform my work, it is more important that I learn about Richmond operations through YOUR frontline experience and expertise.  There’s a lot of impressive work that has been done in Richmond– Releasing Time to Care and the work surrounding your new Bed Map are but two shining examples that have been led by your outgoing COO Mike Nader and Dermot Kelly, your acting COO, who I am now taking over from. Both are accomplished leaders in their own right, and I am committed to continue to build on what they started.

As I mentioned earlier, I’m here for the long term. I won’t make rash changes, but that doesn’t mean I won’t make the changes that are necessary. You have my word; I remain committed to developing a deep understanding of VCH Richmond – its programs, services, patients and staff– before identifying areas that require our collective focus to drive meaningful change that results in better care.

I look forward to meeting as many staff and physicians as possible in the coming weeks. Please, if you see me in the corridors, feel free to step up and say hello. I can also be reached anytime by email, Jennifer.MacKenzie@vch.ca.