'More chaos': Both of Alberta's deputy chief medical officers of health resigning
A pair of public health physicians who assist Alberta's new chief medical officer of health (CMOH) have turned in their notice in the latest shakeup to the province's health system.
Dr. Rosana Salvaterra and Dr. Jing Hu are both resigning from the office of CMOH Dr. Mark Joffe, the health minister and a government spokesperson confirmed Wednesday.
There was no reason given for the departures and it was not clear when the changes would take effect.
When reached by The Canadian Press, Salvaterra responded: “Unfortunately, we are not able to comment.”
She later added that she respects and admires both Dr. Hinshaw and Dr. Hu.
“They are brilliant, hard-working, and compassionate public health physicians and I consider myself fortunate to have had the opportunity to work alongside them for these past 14 months,” she wrote.
Hu's out-of-office message said her “last day at work with Alberta Health was Nov. 18, 2022,” and noted she wouldn't have access to the department email after that date.
Dr. Joffe replaced Dr. Deena Hinshaw on an interim basis in November, after Premier Danielle Smith promised to shake things up during her United Conservative Party leadership campaign.
"We know the premier fired Dr. Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health," NDP MLA David Shepherd said in question period Wednesday.
"Now, there were two deputies in that office as well. We have heard that both have left their roles. So can the premier confirm that both deputy chief medical officers of health are no longer in their roles?"
The premier didn't rise to answer, instead Health Minister Jason Copping did.
"I can confirm that both deputy CMOH have submitted their resignation. They are still continuing to work at this point in time. We are in the process of actually looking to fill those roles and support Dr. Joffe in terms of his role as CMOH with all the support he needs to be able to fulfill his function," he said.
A government spokesperson added: "We expect these changes to have no impact on the department’s and Dr. Joffe’s ability to meet the requirements of the Public Health Act."
Shepherd later said on Twitter that the latest departure equals, "More chaos in the midst of crisis under the UCP."
Smith also fired 11 members from the governing board of Alberta Health Services in November and named Dr. John Cowell as administrator.
One of the board members that Smith fired released a scathing letter afterwards accusing the premier of abusive, divisive attacks and having “warped” anti-science beliefs.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.