Document 7
APPOINTMENT PROCESS OF BOARD OF HEALTH MEMBERS
Under the amendments to the City
of Ottawa Act, 1999, City Council shall appoint the members of the Board of
Health (“BOH”). The following
appointment process is consistent with that of appointments to other boards and
committees:
Council Members
During its regular appointment process
in December 2010, six Council members will be selected by City Council to serve
on the BOH as part of the next term of Council’s appointment and governance
process.
Staff recommends that Council also
appoint a Selection Panel that can assist in the identification of suitable
public member candidates.
Public Members
The following eligibility
criteria have been designed to assist Council in the selection process of the
public members. These criteria are
consistent with those of other BOH’s including the City of Toronto.
·
General
qualifications –In order for a member of the public to
apply to be appointed to the BOH, an applicant must:
o Be
a resident of Ottawa;
o Be
at least 18 years of age; and
o Not
be staff of the City
·
Skills and abilities–
in order to meet the needs of the new Ottawa BOH, staff recommend that, as much
as possible, the Board collectively and individually through its membership
demonstrates the following skills and abilities:
o Interest,
experience or background in issues affecting public health;
o Interest
or skills in planning and policy;
o Experience
in organizational activities, such as committees, non-profit groups, voluntary
societies, occupational associations;
o Skills
in leadership and management and/or experience in administration and budget
development;
o Demonstrated
skills in conflict management, negotiation and mediation;
o Ability
to make a commitment to monthly involvement in Board of Health meetings and
related committee or other activities over a four-year term;
o The
diversity and demographics representative of the community in which the Board
serves;
o Bilingualism;
and
o Other skills and expertise related to the Board’s mission and legislated responsibilities.
Application process and assessment and screening of
candidates
The application period for the public member
positions began on November 5th and will close on November 26. Applicants
have been asked to complete a questionnaire that details information on their
eligibility and qualifications.
At the
end of the application period staff from the City Clerk’s office will conduct
an initial screening of applications based on eligibility criteria. (The
selection panel will have access to the complete list of applicants.)
The
purpose of this initial screening is to review for basic eligibility and
completeness, flag potential conflicts of interest or other areas of concern
and to procure any missing information.
A
second screening will take place in order to select the candidates which best
meet the criteria sought by Council.
This
screened list of candidates will then be provided to the Council-selected
Selection Panel.
The principal assessment of public member
candidates will be carried out by the Selection Panel, which will be composed
of City Council members. Staff suggest the
Selection Panel should meet to consider the candidates and decide on the
interview process.
In addition to putting forward five candidates for approval by
City Council, staff propose the Selection Panel should
also consider designating an alternate candidate who could be appointed at a
later date if necessary to replace appointees unable or unwilling to serve the
full four-year term of office.
A tentative timetable for completing
the selection process is provided below:
|
DATE |
TASK |
|
November
5 to November 26 |
· Opening of public
member recruitment process · Advertisement of
public member positions in local media, Ottawa.ca and social media |
|
December
2010 |
· It is expected that
six Council members will be selected by City Council to serve on Board as
part of the next term of Council’s appointment and governance process · Staff propose that
Council also appoint the Selection Panel for public member appointments to
the BOH · City staff review
and screen public member applications and provide screened list to Selection
Panel · Selection Panel
develops shortlist of public member candidates |
|
January
2011 |
· Selection Panel
conducts interviews as required · Selection Panel
selects five public members to serve on BOH and puts forward names to Council
for approval |
|
February
2011 |
· Council considers
the names put forward by the selection panel and finalizes membership of the
Board · City staff formally
request the Province of Ontario to proclaim in force the new Board · Orientation program
for the new Board members · Staff finalize draft
bylaws and policies necessary for inaugural BOH meeting |
|
April
2011 |
· 1st
meeting of new Board |