Well over 450 people attended the 39th Annual Conference in Whistler this week – making it the largest event in the BC Care Provider Association’s history. Opening remarks were provided by the Hon. Minister Terry Lake whereby he announced $50K in new funding for Concerts in Care to provide additional performances across the province. Dawna Friesen, anchor for Global National, then took the stage and delivered a compelling and deeply personal account of how Alzheimer’s has impacted her family. Both of her parents were diagnosed with the disease and she spoke about their journey living with Alzheimer’s and how much she appreciated the staff who provided their care.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFEGZ6XxId8
“This was truly an amazing conference and it sets the stage for the big 40th Anniversary Conference next year,” says Daniel Fontaine, CEO for the BCCPA. “The quality of speakers, plenaries, workshops and exhibit booths was outstanding and the feedback we’ve received so far has been extremely positive.”
Fontaine and President Elaine Price kicked off the conference by retiring our old logo and launching a new one. The new logo was designed by Reuben Watson and has a modern colour scheme and tells a wonderful story of who we are. If you would like to see the video, click here. In addition, the BCCPA launched a new video which will be used to recruit new members over the next year. That video can be viewed by clicking here.
The Annual General Meeting was the opportunity for members of the Association to elect several new Board Directors. They include:
- Hilary Manning – General Manager, Chartwell Malasapina Gardens Care Residence
- Joe McQuaid – Executive Director, The Alberni-Clayoquot Continuing Care Society
- Ann Marie Leijan – CEO, ValleyCare
- Hendrik Van Ryk – COO, H&H Total Services
Dave Cheperdak (Past-President), Andre Van Ryk (Treasure) and Will McKay stepped down from the Board after having reached the maximum 6 year term permitted under our by-laws. The BCCPA took the opportunity to thank them for their dedication and years of service to the sector.
Upon completion of the AGM, the Board of Directors elected the following individuals to become members of the new Executive:
- Karen Baillie – President (CEO, Menno Place)
- Aly Devji – Vice-President (Assistant Administrator & Director of HR Delta View Habilitation Centre | Delta View Life Enrichment Centre)
- Riz Ghelan – Secretary-Treasurer (CFO, Park Place Seniors Living)
Elaine Price will continue to serve on the Executive in her new role as Past President.
“It was great to see a number of partners from the Ministry of Health and the Health Authorities also participating in the dialogue and discussion,” says Fontaine. “When you combine this with the fact we had a great turnout of student delegates it helps to ensure a much broader representation of the entire continuing care sector is on-hand.”
SafeCare BC also deserves special recognition for hosting what we hope is the 1st Annual Safety Den on Sunday during the pre-conference. Three contestants from across BC were selected to pitch their innovation to the Safety Dragons [a three person panel of judges] in order to win the grand prize of $2000. Congratulations go to Sharon Simpson and the team at Menno Place for winning the grand prize with their unique “Laundry Hauler” invention. In second place winning the $1000 prize was Sandy Parise who presented the “Simple Pleasures Project”. In third place was Valerie Charlton’s innovative “Ballroom Dancing Technique“.
On Sunday afternoon over 30 people also participated in our first-ever “Policy Cafe”. The event was the official kickoff of our consultation on the two White Papers the BCCPA released last month. Over the course of two hours, participants enjoyed a nice lunch and were able to provide feedback on a variety of policy topics.
The BCCPA will be providing you with a number of exclusive interviews and images from the conference in the coming days. Be sure to check back on our website to read more.
