Board of Directors

Board Members

Helen Angus, Board Chair
Helen Angus (B.A., MScPl, University of Toronto) has worked for 30 years in the public sector, including 20 years working in the Government of Ontario and ten years at Cancer Care Ontario. From 2018 to September 2021, Helen served as Ontario’s Deputy Minister of Health, including leading the health response to the COVID-19 pandemic and acting as the Co-Chair of Ontario’s COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force. She is currently a distinguished fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy.

Prior to her role as Deputy Minister of Health, Helen served as Deputy Minister in Treasury Board Secretariat, Citizenship, Immigration and International Trade, Seniors Affairs and Women’s Issues Ministries. She was also Co-Chair of the Council of Deputy Ministers of Health. Helen’s previous board experience includes the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, the Canadian Institute for Health Information, Canada Health Infoway and the Canadian Cancer Society (Ontario).

Ian McKillop, Vice Chair
Ian McKillop (MASc, PhD, FRSPH) is an Associate Professor with the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. Ian was appointed to the University’s inaugural JW Graham Research Chair in Health Information Systems in 2004. He works in the fields of management and systems assurance with a particular focus on issues related to incident response, information security and performance management. Ian is actively engaged in educating tomorrow’s leaders in public health.

Ian’s work has contributed to a number of standards and best practice recommendations in Canada as well as to national and provincial commissions and inquiries. He has lived and worked internationally and brings those experiences to his work in Canada.

Roxanne Anderson, Director
Roxanne Anderson (MBA, FCPA, FCA, ICD.D) is the Senior Vice President of Business Optimization and the Chief Financial Officer of the Victorian Order of Nurses (VON), a leading home and community health care organization. Her portfolio at VON includes digital health care transformation and cyber security posture. She previously served as a managing partner with PwC, where she led many transformational initiatives for publicly and privately funded clients.

Roxanne’s board and governance experience includes being a Board Trustee of the Royal Ottawa Hospital Health Care Group, Vice-Chair of the Royal’s Finance and Audit committees, Chair of the Board of the Royal's Institute for Mental Health Research, Treasurer and Board member of the Distress Centre of Ottawa Region, Co-Chair of the Ottawa Chapter of the Institute of Corporate Directors, Board member and Chair of the Audit Committee of Quarterhill Inc., and member of the Departmental Audit Committee of Shared Services Canada.

Harpreet Bassi, Director
Harpreet Bassi (Ph.D. Western University) is the Vice President, Strategy, Planning and Engagement at Niagara Health. Her previous roles include Director of Policy for Ontario’s Deputy Premier and Minister of Health and key leadership positions at Health Quality Ontario, Cancer Care Ontario, the Centre for Effective Practice and The Change Foundation.

Harpreet holds a Ph.D. in Health and Rehabilitation Science from Western University, a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Queens University and an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Toronto. She also holds an Adjunct Faculty position with the School of Health Sciences at Western University and has taught courses on health policy and leadership.

Dr. Nicola Mercer, Director
Dr. Nicola Mercer (MD MBA MPH FRCPC C. Dir) is the Medical Officer of Health and CEO of Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, a role she has held since 2007. Before joining Public Health, she practiced in acute health care for 15 years as an anaesthesiologist and critical care physician. She is a current member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons nominating committee, a member of the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health Sciences External Advisory Committee, a past member of the University of Guelph Board of Trustees and holds Special Graduate Faculty status in the Department of Population Medicine at the University of Guelph.

In 2017, Dr. Mercer was appointed by then Ontario Minister of Health to the Minister’s Expert Panel on Public Health; looking at Public Health within an Integrated Health System. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she implemented one of North America’s first mask mandates and ensured residents were protected by some of the best vaccine rates in the country. For this work, Dr. Mercer was recognized with a Municipal World Women of Influence in Local Government Award in 2021 and a King Charles III Coronation Medal in 2024.

Rob Notman, Director

Rob Notman (H.B.Sc, CHRP) has worked for over 40 years in the private sector, developing expertise in human resources, marketing, and business development, as well as demonstrated abilities in the areas of strategic planning, recruitment, employee and labour relations, and training and development.
He has developed a strong connection to the health care sector in Ontario, both as a consultant, and through community involvement, including 14 years as a Trustee of the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, serving as Board Chair for three of those years.

Rob’s community and board experiences include leading the Loaned Representative Program for the Campaign Cabinet of the United Way, Board member of Ronald McDonald House and the Ottawa Boys and Girls Club, and until recently serving as a Board member for the Ottawa Chapter of Kid’s Up Front.

Rob holds an Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Carleton University, and a Certificate in Strategic Marketing from Duke University. He also held a Certified Human Resources Professional designation for over 30 years.

S. F. (Ford) Ralph, Director
Ford Ralph (M.B.A. York University) is a retired vice-president of Petro-Canada, where he was responsible for retail and wholesale operations across Canada. In a previous role as Vice-President refining and supply, Ford initiated the development of Petro-Canada’s Corporate National Emergency Response Team and Corporate Crisis Management Team and acted as National Incident Commander for the Team. He holds the Professional Engineer (P. Eng.) designation and the Professional ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Ford recently served on the Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. Board of Directors and was a member of the Audit Committee, the Investment Review Committee and the Strategic Investments Oversight Committee. He is a past governor on the Shaw Festival Board of Governors and was a member of the Finance and Audit Committee, Governance Committee, and Strategic Planning Committee.

Dr. Andy Smith, Director
Dr. Andy Smith (MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS, University of Toronto) is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto and a Professor of Surgery at the University of Toronto. He currently sits on the Board of Directors at Ornge, Toronto Innovation Acceleration Partners and HealthCareCAN. Andy has previously served as Head of the Division of General Surgery at Sunnybrook, Chair of General Surgery at the University of Toronto, Chief of the Odette Cancer Program, and Regional Vice President for Cancer Care Ontario. He has also served as Sunnybrook’s Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Executive. He is passionately interested in health care leadership and the evolution of the health care system in Canada.

He completed a Master of Science, medical school and General Surgery residency at the University of Toronto. He also completed a Surgical Oncology Fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

David Wexler, Director
David Wexler is a bilingual strategic business & human resources leader who has led human resources & business operations for highly successful Canadian and multi-national firms in the technology, consumer packaged goods and financial services industries. His past experience includes holding the role of Chief Human Resources Officer for the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, FreshBooks, Syncapse, Alias Systems, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board as well as line roles with CIBC and Procter & Gamble.

David is an experienced board member and holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors. He is a past member of the boards of Legal Aid Ontario, Cancer Care Ontario, and the Vaughan Community Health Centre and past Chair of the Human Resources and Compensation Committees for the boards of both Legal Aid Ontario and Cancer Care Ontario.

David is the recipient of the Diversity Leadership award from CIBC and an Academy Award (as part of the Alias Systems executive team).