Report to Rapport au: Ottawa Board of Health Conseil de santé d Ottawa March 17, 2014 17 mars 2014 Submitted by Soumis par: Councillor/conseillère D. Holmes Chair / présidente Contact Person Personne ressource: Gillian Connelly, Board Secretary/Secrétaire du Conseil Ottawa Public Health /Santé publique Ottawa 613-580-2424, ext./poste 21544, gillian.connelly@ottawa.ca Ward: CITY WIDE / À L'ÉCHELLE DE LA VILLE File Number: ACS2014-OPH-SSB-0004 SUBJECT: PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL PROCESS FOR THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH FOR 2013 OBJET: PROCESSUS D ÉVALUATION DU RENDEMENT DU MÉDECIN CHEF EN SANTÉ PUBLIQUE POUR 2013 REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS That the Board of Health for the City of Ottawa health unit approve the process for the 2013 performance appraisal of the Medical Officer of Health, as described in this report. RECOMMANDATIONS DU RAPPORT Que le Conseil de santé de la circonscription sanitaire de la ville d Ottawa approuve le processus d évaluation du rendement du médecin-chef en santé publique pour 2013, comme il est indiqué dans le présent rapport.
BACKGROUND The Ontario Public Health Organizational Standards (2011) recommends that the Board of Health have an evaluation policy for staff, including the Medical Officer of Health (MOH). In 2013, in compliance with the Ontario Public Health Organizational Standards (2011), and in accordance with the City of Ottawa s Learning and Development Policy (1), a performance appraisal of the MOH covering the calendar year of 2012 was undertaken. Other boards of health, local boards and the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alpha) were consulted regarding their performance appraisal processes and informed the development of a tool and process for the MOH performance appraisal. The 2012 MOH performance appraisal utilized the MOH Performance and Development Appraisal (2) guidelines and template, which were adapted from alpha to align with the processes and tools used by the City of Ottawa. In following these guidelines and template, Board of Health members completed a survey to assess performance factors, performance measures, key deliverables and core behaviours. The Chair collated the survey responses and summarized broad themes into an Individual Contribution Agreement for the MOH. The Chair then met with the MOH to review themes and implications for the future, before presenting the final report to the Board in a confidential, in-camera session during its regular meeting of August 19, 2013. The August 2013 report also directed staff to look into the processes used by other Board of Health and other local boards. Summary of performance appraisal methods used by other organizations A survey conducted by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care reported that 32 of the 36 Ontario public health units conduct regular performance appraisals of the MOH (3). Various processes are undertaken, including: an evaluation committee comprised of board of health members; a self-evaluation method; a performance appraisal conducted by the Chief Administrative Officer; a performance appraisal conducted by the City Manager, Deputy City Manager or Commissioner of Health. The boards of the Ottawa Police Service, Ottawa Public Library and Ottawa Community Housing implement similar processes. The evaluation is completed annually with a subcommittee and/or small group overseeing the performance evaluation. The chair and/or committee meet with the chief executive officer to discuss the final performance appraisal and the report is forwarded to the board.
DISCUSSION Following the review of processes used by other boards of health, and City agencies, boards and commissions, it is recommended that the same process, which was used for the 2012 evaluation, be implemented for the 2013 MOH performance appraisal. The process was implemented successfully last year. Further, the process for the MOH performance appraisal can also be taken into consideration as part of the final governance review for this Board of Health s term. The proposed 2013 MOH performance appraisal process and tools Survey The proposed tool for assessing the MOH performance would include a survey to assess performance factors, performance measures, key deliverables and core behaviours. A modified version of the alpha MOH Performance Appraisal would be used as the survey, similar to 2012, with changes as suggested by Board members. The survey aligns with the processes and tools used by the City of Ottawa. The adapted survey would be reviewed and approved by the Chair of the Board of Health. Process The Chair of the Board of Health would send the survey to Board members to complete. Once Board members have completed the survey, the Chair would collate the responses and summarize broad themes into an Individual Contribution Agreement for the MOH. The Chair would then meet with the MOH to review themes and implications for the future, before presenting the final report to the Board. Future Medical Officer of Health Performance Appraisals Following the completion of the 2013 MOH performance appraisal, the processes could be taken into consideration as part of the final governance review for this Board of Health s term. The review could inform the possible development of a MOH performance appraisal policy for the Board of Health, which would be considered for the 2015-2018 Board of Health. RURAL IMPLICATIONS There are no rural implications to this information report.
CONSULTATION The purpose of this report is administrative in nature and therefore no public consultation is required. LEGAL IMPLICATIONS There are no legal impediments to the implementation of the report recommendations. RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS There are no risk management implications associated with this report. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS There are no financial implications associated with this report. ACCESSIBILITY IMPACTS There are no accessibility implications to receiving this report. TECHNOLOGY IMPLICATIONS There are no technology implications related to this report. TERM OF COUNCIL PRIORITIES The recommendations in this report support the 2010-2014 Term of Council Priorities under Employee Engagement. BOARD OF HEALTH STRATEGIC PRIORITIES The recommendations in this report support the Board of Health Strategic Priority F2: Support succession planning and professional development in OPH staff. DISPOSITION The Chair will implement the 2013 MOH performance appraisal process, as outlined in the report, and compile a report to the Board that summarizes the comments provided by Board members. REFERENCES 1. City of Ottawa, Human Resources, Employment and Labour Relations. Learning and Development Policy. City of Ottawa (2003)
2. The Association of Local Official Health Agencies. Medical Officer of Health Performance and Development Appraisal. Toronto, ON; (retrieved January 30, 2013) 3. Ministry of Health and Long-term Care, Public Health Division. Initial Report on Public Health. Toronto, ON: Queen's Printer For Ontario (2009) http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/pubhealth/init_report/pdfs/initi al_rep_on_public_health_rep_20090821.pdf