The Red Lake Margaret Cochenour Memorial Hospital will welcome Jennifer Lawrance as the new CEO on June 26, taking over from Angela Bishop who was interim CEO since August 2024.
RED LAKE — With changes happening in and around Red Lake, the soon-to-be CEO of the local hospital said they need to be prepared.
The Red Lake Margaret Cochenour Memorial Hospital will welcome Jennifer Lawrance as the new CEO on June 26, taking over from Angela Bishop who was interim CEO since August 2024.
Lawrance said that with growth in the region such as mining expansion and connectivity with the opening of the Berens River Bridge “could have a really significant impact on the demand and change the needs of the community, and we need to be prepared for that because it’ll happen quickly.”
“We will be prepared,” she added.
The hospital has an application out for a CT scanner. “We definitely – with the expansion – know that its necessary and I could save the system an incredible amount of money in terms of reduced travel costs,” she said.
“You think about the burden that the travel requirements to access care that our families and community members experience, its pretty significant. And there are real inequities in the system, so the CT scan is a part of that.”
To fill the position, Lawrance moved from Thunder Bay where she was the implementation lead at Noojmawing Sookatagaing Ontario Health Team.
“I’ve had the opportunity to work across almost every sector of the health system and the opportunity to work in different communities across the Northwest,” she told Newswatch, and continues that her strong relationships with partners and First Nations allow her to bring different experiences to the role.
Another change that may come to the Red Lake hospital are renovations. “The hospital is over 50 years old, and the population, technology (and) healthcare delivery has changed significantly in that time,” she said.
“We also know we need to make some information technology upgrades to be prepared to accommodate the shift to Meditech Expanse, the new health information system that will be in all of the hospitals in the Northwest next Spring,” she added.
Lawrance said she is “incredibly proud” to be taking over as CEO, saying that “It seems to be a wonderful place to work. People are really accountable to each other in the community and the hospital, and that was really evident when I came or a site visit.”
Bishop left the hospital in great shape financially, she said, and with a good team.