News Release

Social Development

Appointees announced for Council on Aging

23 February 2016

FREDERICTON (GNB) – The names of the appointees to the Council on Aging were announced today by Social Development Minister Cathy Rogers.

“Caring for seniors is a top priority for our government,” said Rogers. “I am confident this council will foster collaboration, bring people together to share best practices and make significant improvements. This council will allow people to become a part of the solution while helping us to identify the needs of the aging population.”

The Council on Aging will develop a strategy for aging in New Brunswick. This strategy will serve as the foundation for a framework that will guide all action on issues affecting seniors and the aging experience in New Brunswick.

Seventeen people have been appointed to the council, including Ken McGeorge of Fredericton and Suzanne Dupuis-Blanchard of Dieppe, who have been selected as the co-chairs.

The other members of the council are:

• Jean-Luc Bélanger, Dieppe;
• Ian MacDonald, Fredericton;
• Anne Marie Gillis, Saint John;
• Haley Flaro, Fredericton;
• Rinette Côté, Lac-Baker;
• Marianne Mallia, Upper Kingsclear;
• Jacqueline Matthews, St. Stephen;
• Ron Toivanen, Bathurst;
• Steve Epworth, Sackville;
• Annabelle St. Laurent, Tracadie;
• Cindy Donovan, Saint John;
• Flora Dell, Moncton;
• Carolyn Wrobel, Moncton;
• Sanjay Siddhartha, Miramichi; and
• Dan Gillis, Moncton

“These individuals bring a wealth of knowledge and experience as well as a range of perspectives to the council,” said Rogers. “New Brunswick is facing a daunting challenge – balancing the needs of an aging population with the rising cost and pressures on the long-term care system. This is a complex issue, and we all have to do our part.”

The intention of the strategy is to build a province where:

• seniors are active and engaged in their communities;
• people of all ages are treated with respect and dignity;
• strategic investments and partnerships support and enable healthy active living throughout an individual’s life course; and
• the right care, supports and services are available to individuals through a system that is responsive, integrated and sustainable; and, further, that represents a seamless continuum of care allowing for transitions back and forth as required.

The council will present an aging strategy to the provincial government before the end of the year. The first meeting of the council is expected to take place in mid-March.

Following are the biographies of the two co-chairs:

Ken McGeorge

Ken McGeorge is the interim executive director of the Alzheimer Society of New Brunswick and is the former chief executive officer of York Foundation and York Care Centre in Fredericton. He has a bachelor of science in business administration from Houghton College and a diploma in hospital administration from the University of Toronto. He is a certified health executive from the Canadian College of Health Leaders. McGeorge has many years’ experience in health and long-term care, including serving as a board member for organizations such as the New Brunswick Association of Nursing Homes, the New Brunswick Hospital Association and the Atlantic Institute on Aging.

Suzanne Dupuis-Blanchard

Suzanne Dupuis-Blanchard is an associate professor of nursing in the Faculty of Health Sciences and Community Services at the Université de Moncton. She holds the Consortium national de formation en santé Research Chair in Population Aging, Université de Moncton; she is also director of the Centre for Aging Research. She is president of the Canadian Association on Gerontology. Dupuis-Blanchard holds a PhD in nursing from the University of Alberta, a master of science in nursing from the University of New Brunswick and a bachelor of science in nursing from the Université de Moncton. She began her career as a public health nurse, working with older adults for the City of Ottawa. She subsequently began a career at Université de Moncton, first as a clinical instructor, then as a teacher and clinical coordinator, and finally as a professor.