PREPARED BY: Planning and Strategic Initiatives

DATE: 2026-02-05

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

The Ontario Public Health Standards (2021), under the Good Governance and Management Practices Domain, states: “the board of health shall have a self-evaluation process of its governance practices…”. 

In addition to a yearly self-evaluation process, the WECHU has developed a quarterly self-assessment survey for Board of Health (BoH) members. The survey provides an opportunity for feedback on BoH operations and is used to inform quality improvement efforts.

DISCUSSION

There were 8 completed surveys received from BoH members related to Q4 effectiveness. 

Responses related to BoH operations continued to be positive overall. Most responses were ‘Strongly Agree’ or ‘Agree’. There were 8 instances of ‘Strongly Disagree’ from the same respondent, however, these responses may have been made in error as there were no additional comments provided and the final rating of overall board effectiveness from this respondent was received as a 10 (Extremely Effective).  

In terms of overall perceived BoH effectiveness, responses received were the same as the Q3 2025 survey and ranged from scores of 7 to 10. The average score was also the same, at 9.1/10.

Suggestions for improvement included:

• More public engagement to improve board decision making
• Improvement in marketing
• New collaborations with youth and senior groups.