Dr. Katherine Chubbs knows a thing or two about achievement.
The University of Lethbridge Adjunct Professor is a registered nurse, holds a Bachelor of Nursing, a Master of Health Studies-Leadership, a Doctor of Business Administration in Healthcare Management, and is a Certified Health Executive.
However, it’s not just her academic achievements that set her apart, but her work in the sector that has made the biggest difference, most recently as the newly-minted President and CEO of the Good Samaritan Society, which provides accommodations, specialized health and community care services and programs to aging individuals in need.
Strategy, Power and Politics
Dr. Chubbs brings her timely experience and knowledge of all levels of health care to Health Services Management 5400 – Strategy, Power and Politics, which she teaches in term four.
“There are so many learnings from the COVID experience pertaining to the topic I teach. Strategy, power and politics are all dominant as we manage COVID,” says Dr. Chubbs, who adds that an increase in students with English as a second language and foreign-trained doctors add richness and new perspectives to the subject matter.
While integrating pandemic content into her curriculum may be new this year, Dr. Chubbs says it’s all part of the evolution of health care education.
“The move to virtual has been very positive. The students are adjusting to different professors’ requirements, and are adapting to new information related to the pandemic,” she says.
“Virtual is going to play an even bigger role in the future. Students need to adapt to nuances in how each professor teaches and will need to listen and read more carefully to instructions as they continue to work independently in many respects.”
Change agents, mentors, innovators and problem solvers
Although Dr. Chubbs is well-versed in the range of opportunities health care offers, she believes that, regardless of the role, we all have the potential to be change agents, mentors, innovators, problem solvers and effective communicators.
Prior to joining Good Samaritan in November 2020, Dr. Chubbs played many roles in the health care system, including (but not limited to) serving as the Chief Zone Officer in the south zone for Alberta Health Services, as Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer for the Eastern Health Region in Newfoundland and Labrador, and as the Director of Professional Practice, Infection Prevention and Control, and Rural Services for Alberta Health Services.
She is also the former president of the Academy of Canadian Executive Nurses and the former chair of the Newfoundland and Labrador Chapter of the Canadian College of Health Leaders.
Originally from a remote Labrador community, Dr. Chubbs is an active volunteer, enjoys hiking and getting outdoors, and has a loving husband and two wonderful children, her daughter, who is a doctor and her son, who is a firefighter.
To learn from Dr. Chubbs and other stellar instructors like her, enroll in the ULethbridge Health Services Management program.