Provincial lab announces first CEO and official name

Craig Ivany will lead Alberta Public Labs starting in September

EDMONTON – The Board of Alberta Health Services (AHS) has appointed Craig Ivany as CEO of Alberta’s new provincial lab services subsidiary, named Alberta Public Labs.

Ivany’s career in healthcare spans more than 30 years. Since 2013, he has served as CEO of Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association, where he has been involved in systems integration at the local, regional and national level, leading service delivery transformation and performance improvement in both the public and private sector.

“I want to congratulate Mr. Ivany on his appointment. He has an impressive track record of healthcare leadership, and he will help to ensure Albertans have access to high quality laboratory services,” says AHS Board Chair Linda Hughes.

“Building an integrated, publicly-delivered, provincial lab service means Alberta patients and their healthcare teams will have more seamless and quicker access to test results,” says Sarah Hoffman, Minister of Health. “I’m proud our government is building a better system by creating Alberta Public Labs and look forward to achieving further milestones on this project.”

Ivany will begin his role on Sept. 24. Alberta Public Labs will deliver all laboratory services for the province. It will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of AHS and will support patients receiving care in the community and through AHS programs and facilities. Work is underway to integrate all laboratory services and is scheduled for completion in 2022.

Diagnostic laboratory results inform the majority of patient care decisions. They are also a critical factor in decisions made every day for patients being admitted to and discharged from hospital, receiving chemotherapy, being admitted for renal dialysis, or booked for surgery.

Alberta Public Labs will follow best practice integrated models, such as the Mayo Clinic and Mayo Medical Laboratories, both of which are consulting with AHS on its new lab.

The establishment of one provincial laboratory organization follows recommendations made by the Health Quality Council of Alberta (HQCA) in its 2016 review of lab services to improve the provincial healthcare system.

This included a provincial plan for integrated laboratory services, one laboratory information system, new lab infrastructure to meet urgent needs in Edmonton and a robust stakeholder engagement process.

Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Its mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans.

• Alberta Public Labs - backgrounder

Biography

Craig Ivany’s career began in hospital administration in Newfoundland, where he spent nine years with the Clarenville Area Hospital Board, eventually moving on to become Executive Director of Canadian Blood Services’ operations portfolio.

After 17 years in the public and not-for-profit sectors, he moved to the private sector, and for the next eight years, worked in the medical laboratory industry in Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario. In January 2013, Ivany joined Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association as the Chief Executive Officer, leading the integration of laboratory services.

He earned a Bachelor of Commerce from Memorial University of Newfoundland and Masters in Business Administration from the University of British Columbia. He is a certified health executive and long-time member of the Canadian College of Health Leaders and holds the ICD.D designation with the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Ivany is recognized as a strategic laboratory services executive with a solid record of achievement in building and leading strong teams, delivering patient-focused, high-quality and sustainable services.

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