Second Grey Bruce Public Health Special Adviser Appointed

Grey Bruce Public Health building. Photo by Claire McCormack Oct. 3rd 2025

A second adviser has been appointed to assist another provincial appointee in developing an “action plan” to address Ministry of Health concerns with Grey Bruce Public Health’s board.

Jim Pine, special adviser to the province’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kieran Moore, issued a statement Friday saying Dr. Eileen de Villa has been appointed as a second adviser with respect to the Grey Bruce Health Unit.

She was the City of Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health from 2017-24. The statement from Pine says de Villa was appointed during a meeting involving the “health unit’s governance partners” on Oct. 24.

“Bringing deep knowledge of public health practice and governance, Dr. de Villa will work with me to help Grey Bruce Public Health emerge stronger and better equipped to serve the community. Together we are committed to work with the appointees to the Board of Health, health unit staff, and municipal partners on a comprehensive plan focused on strengthening leadership, rebuilding key relationships and ensuring long-term stability,” Pine says in a release. “We discussed these priorities at our recent meeting and look forward to sharing more information about these next steps soon.”

The province’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kieran Moore assumed powers of Grey Bruce’s Board of Health back in August, due to “serious concerns with the board’s ability to fulfill its responsibilities, including issues related to governance, leadership, financial management and human resources.” He then appointed Pine as his special adviser with regards to Grey Bruce Public Health.

The Ministry of Health identified concerns with Grey Bruce’s Board of Health through an independent assessment conducted under the Health Protection and Promotion Act. An assessment report exists with details about the Ministry’s review of Grey Bruce Public Health’s board, but it has not been made public.

Last month, Pine issued a release saying work was ongoing to develop a comprehensive action plan to “address important findings documented through the independent assessment.”

Bayshore News also previously reported on alleged interactions between Board of Health members that resulted in a separate third-party investigation into a potential violation of Grey Bruce Public Health’s discrimination and harassment policy. The findings of that investigation have not been made public either.

The latest update from the Chief Medical Officer’s special adviser, Pine, says more information about “next steps” will be shared soon.

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