Kemptville District Hospital welcomes new volunteer members and officers

KEMPTVILLE, ONTARIO, SEPTEMBER 2, 2025 – Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) is pleased to announce that four new members have joined its Board of Directors. These volunteer directors bring a wide variety of invaluable experience and expertise to the hospital’s governing body.

The Board also appointed a new Chair, Erin Bonokoski, Vice-Chair, Helen Zipes, and Treasurer, Gordon Wyse. KDH would like to thank former Chair, Jeff Nolan – now Past Chair – and Stephen Saslove, former Treasurer, for their dedicated service and contributions to the hospital.

Bonokoski, a resident of Kemptville, is an industry leader in strategic communications with extensive public affairs experience in both the public and private sectors, providing critical insight and first-hand experience working with all levels of government to influence decision makers and implement results driven campaigns. She is a Partner with Crestview Strategy, based out of the Ottawa Office.

Zipes, who joined the Board in 2022, brings a wealth of knowledge to the Vice-Chair role. She is a former Physiotherapist with more than 35 years of experience working in positions of increasing responsibility in healthcare. Zipes obtained her B.Sc. (P.T.) from McGill University and her M.B.A. from the University of Ottawa. She spent 28 years at The Ottawa Hospital (TOH), including the Civic and Riverside Hospitals prior to amalgamation and her most recent role as Clinical Director of the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre and Academic Family Health Team. She is an experienced board member and former chair of a community-based board.

Wyse is a seasoned financial executive with 35 plus years of experience steering and overseeing global high-tech enterprises. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant with a Commerce degree from Ottawa University. Beyond boardrooms and financial spreadsheets, he has a passion for community service and is a proud resident of Kemptville.

The four new Board members are as follows:

Leanne Armstrong, RN, BA, MHS, MSN

Armstrong is an accomplished healthcare leader and educator with over 40 years of experience spanning clinical practice, academic instruction, and executive leadership. She holds a Master of Nursing with a focus in clinical education from Charles Sturt University, a Master of Health Studies in Leadership from Athabasca University, and a Bachelor of Psychology from the University of Western Ontario.

Her previous roles include Executive Director at Victorian Order of Nurses Western Region, Manager of Emergency Services at Peterborough Regional Health Centre, and Associate Professor at Mount Royal University’s School of Nursing. Her leadership has been marked by successful initiatives in quality improvement, strategic planning, and community partnerships. 

Malcolm Jones

Jones, who recently moved to Kemptville, graduated from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Manchester in 1979, subsequently working in a variety of community pharmacy roles and locations before returning to his hometown to continue community practise, quickly becoming a manager pharmacist for a local pharmacy chain.

He was recruited by Shoppers Drug Mart in 1988; there was a shortage of pharmacists in Ontario at the time and relocated to Belleville where he lived and worked. Having left Shoppers Drug Mart in 2011, he joined the fledging Belleville Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic as clinical pharmacist and that experience was the best professional time of his career where he experienced great collaboration. Malcolm is now a retired pharmacist.

Ken Lawless, M.Sc.

Ken Lawless, a resident of Kemptville, is the former Senior Director of the Ottawa Health Innovation Hub in the Office of the Vice-President, Research & Innovation at the University of Ottawa, and past Director of the Canadian Pandemic Preparedness Hub (CP2H).

He has held leadership and advisory roles across numerous private and not-for-profit boards, expert panels, and selection committees. Notably, he served as Vice-Chair of the Health Standards Organization (HSO), Co-Chair of Accreditation Canada, and as a board member of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) and its venture arm, FACIT.

Melissa Ruigrok, NP, BScN, MScN, EMBA (Queen’s 2026 Candidate) 

Ruigrok is an accomplished Nurse Practitioner (NP) and healthcare executive with over 20 years of leadership experience across hospital, long-term care, government, Indigenous, and international health systems. Known for her strategic insight and operational excellence, Melissa has overseen public health programs, led successful clinical operations for the U.S. Embassy across Canada, and pioneered new models of care in long-term and community-based settings.

She is recognized for advancing culturally safe, resident-centered care. She brings experience in inclusive leadership, quality improvement, and board governance, and is a recipient of multiple awards, including recognition from U.S. Presidents and Ambassadors.

In addition to the four members noted above, the Board also welcomes two ex-officio members.  Elizabeth MacPherson was elected to the Board as the Kemptville District Hospital Auxiliary’s ex-officio representative and serves as Co-President of the Auxiliary. MacPherson returns to the Board in this new role after formerly serving seven years on the KDH Board, two of those as Chair. She brings a wealth of experience in law, particularly in industrial and labour relations.

Dr. Patrick Davison joins the Board in an ex-officio capacity as the new President of the Medical Staff at KDH. Dr. Davison is a respected general surgeon who has served at KDH for the past 15 years and has over 20 years of clinical and leadership experience in Brockville. Dr. Davison brings to this role a strong foundation of experience, along with a spirit of humility and collaboration. He is committed to advocating for physicians and working closely with leadership to support high-quality, patient-centered care.

KDH would like to extend heartfelt thanks to its outgoing Board members – André Rancourt, Yves Pelletier, Stephen Saslove, and Dr. Loan Luong – for their vital service to the hospital.

About Kemptville District Hospital

Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) is an integrated health services organization serving the health needs of North Grenville, the eastern regions of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, and South Ottawa in partnership with other healthcare and community organizations in our region. KDH is part of an approved Ontario Health Team – Ottawa West Four Rivers – comprised of many community service providers as well as our primary care providers in the region. KDH provides 24-hour emergency care, inpatient care, surgical programs including advanced orthopedic surgery, and a wide variety of outpatient clinics. We are committed to our mission of ‘Building Healthier Communities’ based on a patient and family centered delivery model, collaborative partnerships, and employing the best technology available. KDH is a model of hospital-led integrated health services within the provincial health system.

Media contact:

Jenn Westendorp, Communications Officer

Kemptville District Hospital

613.258.6133 x 225

Email: jwestendorp@kdh.on.ca