A newly formed non-profit that focuses on seniors care has a new president and CEO.
Jane Murphy is taking the roles with the Providence Residential & Community Care Society.
It’s a newly formed non-profit society with a mission of providing care for seniors, particularly those in long term care.
The ownership of The Views at St. Joseph’s was recently transferred from the Bishop of Victoria to the society.
Murphy previously served as president and CEO of St. Joseph’s Hospital Comox from 2011 to 2017.
During her tenure, she led the organization through major transitions, most challenging of which was the acute-care transfer to the North Island Hospital Comox Valley Campus.
More recently, she guided the transition of the ownership of St. Joseph’s from the Bishop of Victoria to PRCC.
Murphy said the society plans on introducing programs that will expand seniors care, locally.
“(We plan to have) daycare programs for seniors, that they can come and be supported and have activities during the day and that really supports their caregivers, as well as supports them to stay in their own home longer, which many seniors, of course, want to do,” she said.
“So looking at those types of programs and even looking at how we could develop more of those programs to allow those people to stay in their homes for as long as they can and it’s safe to do so.”
Society chair Sandra Heath said Murphy is a respected healthcare executive with over 25 years of progressive leadership experience in both Canadian and US health care systems, including a long history of leading faith-based organizations.
“Importantly, she has strong connections to Vancouver Island, BC’s Lower Mainland and the Comox Valley, maintaining networks with health, education and civic stakeholders and important relationships with Island Health and the Ministry of Health,” Heath said.
The society says that Murphy joins PRCC at a pivotal moment in its evolution.
“We have a clear and exciting vision for strengthening seniors care, dementia care and other health and housing services in Vancouver, the Comox Valley community and throughout B.C.,” Heath said.
“We’re going to redevelop innovative and vibrant seniors care services – starting with The Views in Comox – that help realize the BC Ministry of Health vision of integrated services for seniors and other populations. Jane is the ideal person to lead us and PRCC forward in making this vision into reality in the coming months and years.”
Murphy said that her immediate priorities will be focused on strengthening stakeholder relationships and pushing forward with the development of new seniors homes and community services.
“We are bringing something unique to seniors and community care. We want to build campuses of care that include a dementia village along with additional services that are needed in the communities we serve,” Murphy said. “Our shared desire is to change long-term care from an institutionalized medical model of care to one based on a home-like environment for residents and patients, connected to their neighbourhood and community. The focus will be on emotional and social connections and building a community people truly want to live in, all supported by the latest research, innovation and global best practices.”
Murphy noted that over the next 15 years, the population of people with dementia is expected to double.
“That’s significant,” she said.
“PRCC is really committed to and focused on, how can we respond to that and provide programs and places to live for people with dementia that really provides an outstanding quality of life for them and assures that their loved ones feel really good about the care that they’re receiving, the lives that they’re living, and we feel there is important work to do in this area and we’re excited to be working in that regard.”
