Alberta wanted chief medical officer of health to remain in job, premier says
Position remains vacant as measles cases climb
As calls mount for the Alberta government to ensure the province's next top doctor is free to speak publicly, Premier Danielle Smith has confirmed the chief medical officer of health left of his own accord this week.
Dr. Mark Joffe's contract ended on Monday, after it had been extended for two weeks.
The vacancy comes at a time when the provincial government faced growing demands for Joffe to speak publicly and address Alberta's ongoing measles outbreaks.
A number of doctors questioned whether he was allowed to do so.
"The health minister was hoping that Dr. Mark Joffe would accept an extension of his contract right up until it expired," said Smith in response to the NDP during question period on Wednesday.
"He chose to go on to other opportunities. He's done a great job for us through a number of different crises, whether it was E. coli or giving us advice on the most recent measles outbreak."
Smith said the government is in the process of interviewing candidates and she hopes to announce an interim CMOH very soon.
The search is also on for a permanent replacement.
"I know Dr. Joffe well enough to know he would have wanted to speak to the public about outbreaks," said Dr. Braden Manns, a former Alberta Health Services interim vice-president who worked closely with Joffe during his time on the executive team.
"He would have felt that communication is really important."
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According to Manns, who is a professor of medicine and health economics at the University of Calgary, medical officers of health are in short supply, noting some left the positions after facing public backlash as the COVID-19 pandemic evolved.
He calls the vacancy in such a key position, as measles cases rise, "concerning."
"We need somebody steering the ship," said Manns.
Alberta reported six new measles cases on Wednesday, including four in the central zone and two in the south zone.
That brings the total to 83 cases since the outbreaks began in early March.
Dr. Sam Wong, an Edmonton-based pediatrician, expects Alberta's measles case count to top 100 soon. And that, he said, adds to the sense of urgency.
"The timing is less than stellar. I think this is not great from the point of view of public health … when we're having an outbreak of measles," said Wong, the section president of pediatrics with the Alberta Medical Association.
Leadership void, doctors warn
Measles is a highly contagious and potentially deadly virus. The provincial government's own website says two doses of the vaccine offer nearly 100 per cent protection.
"If you take away the leadership at a central level, who is actually co-ordinating the provincial response to the measles outbreak? And we're not seeing that co-ordination," said Wong
"We have the answer to this. It's vaccination. And the lack of support — it seems like — for this at a higher level is disappointing and is saddening from our point of view as pediatricians"
Premier Smith said Wednesday that outbreaks are being handled at a local level
"There are medical officers of health in every zone in the province and they are taking the lead wherever it is that we have an outbreak of measles," she said, pointing to provincial health estimates that of the 83 confirmed cases, eight were believed to be active as of midweek..
"We're going to continue to ensure that everyone knows where they can get their vaccination."
Recruitment ongoing
Finding the right person to take over as chief medical officer of health is is key, especially during a crisis, according to Dr. Louis Hugo Francescutti, a professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta.
"They're trained to be sensitive, politically astute and making sure that they communicate what needs to be communicated to the public. And it should be based on evidence," he said.
"We can't have a quack doing it. And we can't have someone who's on a leash and muzzled. It's as simple as that."
With Joffe's departure, concerns are emerging that the province could struggle to recruit a qualified candidate given the questions around the CMOH's independence and ongoing turmoil related to the provincial government's full-scale restructuring of the health system.
Joffe's predecessor, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, was ushered out swiftly after Smith was sworn in as premier in 2022.
"I would imagine it proves very difficult to recruit someone — who I would caution to say — would be coming into really a hostile environment for senior leadership," said Ian Culbert, executive director of the Ottawa-based Canadian Public Health Association.
Meanwhile, Wong echoes those concerns.
"The position has, unfortunately, I would say been tainted somewhat by political interference," he said.
"I think it will be difficult. It will be harder to find somebody who is going to be willing to take on this position knowing there will likely be some degree of political interference in their messaging and their ability to act in the best interest of the population of Alberta."
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With files from Janet French