By Cecilia Nasmith

Campbellford Memorial Hospital and Northumberland County are pleased to announce a strategic partnership in Human Resource administration.

The implementation of the shared-service agreement will see the county deliver HR consultation services in all areas of the hospital's human resources, resulting in operational efficiencies and an enhanced depth and breadth of HR services available at the hospital.

In the announcement, CMH president and chief executive officer Varouj Eskedjian spoke of the hospital's continuous search for opportunities to identify efficiencies and improve service delivery, in line with province-wide health-system transformation efforts.

“With this shared-service agreement, we are enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of our operations by collaborating with a community partner who has established expertise in the provision of back office-type supports,” Eskedjian said.

“Northumberland County will assist CMH with the administration of complex Human Resource policies and practices. This arrangement will further ensure that we have the tools in place to support the CMH team as well as fulfill reporting and administrative requirements as an employer, while continuing to direct our focus to providing exceptional patient care.”

Under the new agreement, the county will provide HR support in such areas as labour relations, pay equity/ compensation, benefit administration, disability case management, performance management and workplace investigations.

Acting Warden Bob Sanderson said in the press release that the county is pleased to pursue this collaborative initiative as another opportunity to deliver value to residents.

“Shared services are a strategic focus for Northumberland County council as a means of driving innovation and efficiency in the use of resources for meeting the needs of our community,” Sanderson stated.

“Council encourages staff to explore partnerships with municipal counterparts, as well as those in the broader public sector across Northumberland, that will maximize public investments, increase organizational capacity, and reinforce the public good.”