After more than three years as executive director of the Community Care Access Centre here, Dave Murray will be taking over the reins of the Sault Ste. Marie Group Health Centre effective Nov. 6.
“I’m really honoured to land a position like this,” said Murray, a lifelong Fort Frances resident who will oversee 60 physicians and some 300 staff as president and CEO of the largest health service organization in Canada.
“The history of it was that it was started by a steelworkers’ union to provide care for workers and their families,” he noted. “Now, it has a rostered client list of 50,000 people from Sault Ste. Marie and the surrounding area.”
As a primary care centre, the GHC offers a full range of services from chemotherapy to physiotherapy. In Murray’s words, it could best be described as a “hospital without beds.”
While Murray will be leaving here in November, his family–including wife, Carol, twin daughters, Michelle and Nicole, and son, Daniel–will not be heading east until at least the girls and Carol, a teacher, can finish the next school year.
“I was born and raised here. We certainly like the area, and we’ll miss things like the lake, the outdoors,” Murray mused. “It’s taken a lot to pry me away from this community.”
Looking back over the past three-plus years, Murray said, “There’s been the establishment of the [310-INFO] call centre, and we’ve made strides in providing consistent services throughout the [Kenora and Rainy River] districts.
“And looking at the current status of the CCAC, we’re recognized as one of the best CCACs in the province,” he added. “We have a visionary board and an excellent staff. It’s very hard to leave it.
“But with such a great CCAC, I know the people of the two districts should look forward to more good things to keep coming their way,” Murray remarked.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
