Author not surprised by controversy over former Alberta Chief Medical Officer Hinshaw

A man who co-authored a book about government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic said he’s not surprised by the recent controversy over Dr. Deena Hinshaw in Alberta.

Hinshaw served as Chief Medical Officer of Health for the province during the pandemic, but was replaced in the fall of 2022, after Prime Minister Danielle Smith came to power.

News recently broke that she had been rehired by Alberta Health Services (AHS), sparking outrage among some. CBC news has reported the job offer was withdrawn after the hiring became public knowledge, but the details remain unclear – AHS has said little other than a short statement on Twitter on June 3 and said, “AHS is not talking about human resources. Hinshaw is not employed by AHS.”

Marco Navarro-Genie, author and president of the Haultain Institute, said rightly or wrongly that Hinshaw had become a symbol of pandemic restrictions such as masking and lockdowns, and a target of resentment for some in the province.

“People were terribly upset, people had lost their jobs … when Prime Minister Smith came in I think she kind of had her finger on that,” he said.

It didn’t start that way. Initially, during the pandemic, Navarro-Genie said, Hinshaw was “captured” by many in the public, pointing to a Facebook page set up in her honor.

“I don’t remember the exact number, but it was in the tens of thousands of fans,” he said.

But as Hinshaw continued to steer the government’s response to the pandemic, things began to change, he said. The tribute page was taken down after people started posting unkind comments.

Hinshaw provided advice to Prime Minister Jason Kenney’s government during the pandemic, and while the provincial cabinet had the final say, both Kenney and Hinshaw began to become lightning rods of resentment over restrictions.

That eventually led to Hinshaw to be replaced in November 2022, after Prime Minister Danielle Smith replaced Jason Kenney as Prime Minister in October.

As for whether it’s fair or not, the fact is people wanted Kenney gone and people wanted her gone. … They were both the most visible part of the receiving end of the anger because they were constantly on television,” Navarro-Genie said.

Despite this, Navarro-Genie said he wasn’t surprised when news surfaced earlier in June about the possibility of Hinshaw returning.

“I have often thought … even before the pandemic, that the Alberta Health Services often behaves as if it were an independent entity,” he said. And so I wasn’t too surprised that someone would turn around and kind of bring her back, in that sense, so I don’t think it was a mistake. It seems like a very deliberate effort to bring her back as they were angry that the Prime Minister had expelled her.

Dismissal

The AHS has said it would not comment, but the controversy has also led to the resignation of a prominent Indigenous physician, Dr. Esther Tailfeathers, who was senior medical director of the AHS Provincial Indigenous Wellness Core.

On June 20, the Alberta Medical Association Indigenous Health Committee (IHC) issued a notice of her dismissal on Twitter.

“Dr. Tailfeathers is a member of the IHC, a highly respected member of our community and a prominent advocate for the health of indigenous peoples,” the group said. “The circumstances leading to her resignation have raised questions from the IHC, including Indigenous doctors and community members. The impact her resignation will have on Indigenous health in Alberta is unknown, but there is confusion and concern among many.

“It is critical that the voices and experience of Indigenous peoples are honored and respected as we work to address health inequalities,” it said.

Despite the concerns, Navarro-Genie believes any decision not to rehire Hinshaw has nothing to do with the health of the indigenous people.

“It has nothing to do with that… Hinshaw is the problem, and the terrible decision to try and retrieve her given the circumstances under which she was released,” he said.

But he added that the provincial government could have handled the controversy better.

“I don’t think they’ve done very well,” he said. “I think the government was willing to sweep it under the rug and pretend it didn’t happen… I think they could have done better by standing firm and saying AHS is once again coloring way out of bounds. rules…there’s a denial that it even happened, right? And it’s a new government, people expect a little bit better.”

Meanwhile the provincial government announced on June 23 that Dr. John Cowell, the official administrator of the AHS, will have his term of office extended until at least the end of the year.

Last November, Cowell was hired as trustee for the AHS to replace an 11-member board that had been removed by Smith. That happened not long after Hinshaw was replaced.

In a press release, the government said that “meaningful improvements have been made to Alberta’s health care system and Dr. Cowell’s appointment has now been extended through the end of the year to continue work to further improve health care.”

The release quotes Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange as saying, “We already have tangible results for Albertans to see. I look forward to working with him over the next six months to continue healthcare improvements until a permanent governance structure for AHS is developed.”