Opinion: Health and long-term care lost a strong advocate

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New BrunswickTJ CommentColumnist

Shirley Giberson remembered for her integrity, honour, and focus on the goal when it came to improving province’s system

Author of the article:

Ken McGeorge  •  Health care reform

Published Jan 07, 2026  •  Last updated 1 day ago  •  5 minute read

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Shirley Giberson was one of the strong, original advocates of health and long-term care reform, writes columnist Ken McGeorge. SUBMITTEDArticle content

Just prior to Christmas 2025, a lady passed away who I would describe as one of the strong, original advocates of health and long-term care reform.

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Shirley Giberson was, by most standards, an ordinary lady from Carleton County. She was a hair dresser by profession, incredibly active in her church and its programs, a leader in provincial church women’s activities, a strong proponent of senior safe living assistive devices.

Her life was devoted to serving voluntarily in situations in which she honestly believed she could help to make a positive difference. Her motivation was anything but self-interest. When asked to serve, I know her first consideration was always: can I make a difference? Is this a cause worth investing my time and energy in? Will the organization and community benefit from my involvement?

How do I know that those things are true? As the original CEO of the Region 3 Hospital Corporation from 1992 through 1995, I was there with her as the first chair of the new board of directors. The year was 1992 and the 56 hospitals in the province were all struggling with financial issues, human resources issues, survival issues. Left without strong and visible change, most hospitals would have been bankrupt and worse.

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Is this sounding familiar?

The McKenna government recognized what had now been recommended for nearly three decades had to be initiated in order to save the system and strengthen it for the future. All hospital boards were summarily finished and replaced by regional boards. The regional boards were very carefully selected for initial terms of three years. Government knew the job they would be doing in re-structuring health care would be controversial and not readily accepted in some small communities and by some local professional groups.

These boards needed to be comprised of persons of strong character and the initial chairs needed to have nerves of steel! That was Shirley Giberson who had earned much respect and, in the various volunteer roles she had executed, learned how to lead.

In 1992, her most recent credit was as chair of the Northern Carleton Hospital, a 40-bed facility in Bath. It had a proud history and the core of the medical staff were the prominent Lockart family. They provided much-needed medical and surgical care in that community for generations and the current generation continues to carry the flag with one of the province’s new collaborative care clinics.

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Shirley had been the chair of the board of that hospital where she became very knowledgeable in the issues of hospital management and professional service structures. She also had become noticed on the provincial scene as a strong hospital board chair. She could see and really understood the risk being faced by small community hospitals and she could understand what was in store for them as the system grew and changed in future years.

In taking on the role as first chair of the regional hospital board for region 3, she was well placed since all of the 14 hospitals and health centres were at risk of much change. In successful hospital organizations, the relationship between the board chair and the CEO is critical and she and I invested many days in executing our respective leadership roles. Many days at many crazy hours of the day driving from Plaster Rock to McAdam and every place in between. Often it was just enough time for a “sandwich on the run” as we got to the next community to listen to the legitimate concerns of good people in the communities.

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She understood their concerns because her life was spent in rural New Brunswick. But she also knew that essential change was inevitable and it is better for communities to participate and be engaged in order to ensure the best interests of the community were served.

Whether appearing before a community group or a hospital staff or a group of physicians, she had the capacity to listen but always staying with the agenda.

In New Brunswick, we do line up along Conservative/Liberal lines and in those days even the COR and NDP parties were active and the boards and their leadership were fair game, convenient targets, surrogates for what they thought was bad government strategy. Shirley never showed an ounce of partisanship in any of those deliberations, even when some would try to trap her.

Why am I describing this? She demonstrated all the qualities that are required by those purporting to play a role in saving our system. Steadfastness, integrity, honour, focus on the goal. In our province, it is too easy to become distracted by vocal voices that would seek to distract, to advance a different agenda.

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As I have described on more than one occasion, there are 10 key factors that need focus and fixing if the health and long-term care system is to survive. Getting distracted by “the flavour of the day” is not helpful. Dealing with the essential issues will lead to a strong system of which we can be proud. But if the advocates place priority on “likeability” little progress will take place. Leaders have to bite the bullet, make decisions that some may not like…. but the people who understand will thank you for it.

Creating public systems in the absence of good existing systems is always, universally a big challenge. Public response is rarely what might be anticipated. When planners would dream of public acceptance that rarely happens unless you are simply dropping taxes or the price of gas. So those who would lead the creation of newness need to be ready for the unexpected in public response, the cynicism and push-back that is inevitable and stay the course, unless, of course, the plan is flawed.

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The only thing flawed in the plan of 1992 was that none of those who were on the front line of implementation had ever done something of that magnitude in the public sector, neither had those who were directing at political and governmental levels. That is the price of charting new courses. But all were convinced that it was the right thing, that the goal was to create a system that would enable health services to grow and develop into the future.

Shirley and her colleagues understood that and were prepared to do what had to be done even at the risk of straining some relationships.

Our current Minister of Health has shown that level of spine with primary health care. We just now need to see the same boldness on the long-term care file.

Ken McGeorge, BS,DHA,CHE is a retired career health care CEO, part time consultant, and columnist with Brunswick News; he is the author of Health Care Reform in New Brunswick and may be reached at kenmcgeorge44@outlook.com or www.kenmcgeorge.com

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