KDH names Dr. Colin Sentongo as its new Chief of Staff

KEMPTVILLE, ONTARIO, FRIDAY, JULY 16, 2021 – The Board of Directors of Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Colin Sentongo as the Hospital’s new Chief of Staff, effective July 2, 2021.

KDH’s new Chief of Staff, Dr. Colin Sentongo

A highly regarded anesthetist and ER physician, Dr. Sentongo brings to his new role six years of leadership experience as Chief of KDH’s Anesthesia Department. During his tenure as Anesthesia Chief, Dr. Sentongo oversaw the introduction of a number of new surgical programs, including both a neurosurgical and spine decompression surgical program, and a virtual anesthesia preoperative clinic. He was also responsible for developing several new processes, protocols and procedures to ensure the highest quality and safety of care for surgical patients. His dedication to patient centred care was the driving force behind his development of a pre-operative surgical video, a preparatory guide for patients having surgery at KDH.

Dr. Sentongo is committed to helping to train the next generation of physicians; ongoing teaching responsibilities include providing exposure to rural anesthesia to Queen’s University and University of Ottawa medical students through the Eastern Regional Medical Education Program, and teaching anesthesia electives to University of Ottawa Family Practice residents.

Dr. Sentongo’s main areas of interest are both Emergency Medicine and Anesthesia. He completed his Family Medicine Residencies at both the Northeastern Ohio School of Medicine and the University of Calgary, followed by further Anesthesia training at the University of Ottawa. He has worked extensively in Emergency Rooms across Southern Alberta, and currently holds anesthetic privileges across multiple hospitals in Eastern Ontario.

As KDH’s new Chief of Staff, Dr. Sentongo will also serve as Chair of the KDH Medical Advisory Committee, and play a key role as a member of the Board of Directors. In addition to his duties as Chief of Staff, Dr. Sentongo will continue to provide expert anesthetic care to patients in KDH’s growing list of surgical programs.

Dr. Sentongo succeeds Dr. Penny McGregor, who served as Chief of Staff from 2017 to 2021. Dr. McGregor’s first two years in the role were noteworthy for a number of important and significant changes she led in restructuring KDH’s physician leadership and professional staff bylaws. Her second two years were dominated, of course, by COVID-19. Dr. McGregor proved to be an inspiring and tireless leader in navigating the enormous challenges posed by the global pandemic. Her calm and capable approach motivated and gave confidence to KDH staff to rise to the occasion day after day to do what needed to be done. Dr. McGregor, who has provided services at KDH since 2003, will remain involved, caring for inpatients as Hospitalist on a rotational basis.

At the June 24, 2021 meeting of the KDH Board of Directors, Board Chair Robert Morais offered sincere thanks and appreciation to Dr. McGregor for her selfless service to KDH, and welcomed Dr. Sentongo to his new role.

“We are delighted with Dr. Sentongo’s appointment,” Morais stated. “He has earned the respect of his colleagues at KDH over the years, through transparency in his decision making and inclusion of their opinions. His leadership experience, combined with the relationships he has built at KDH in all areas of the hospital, will ensure his effectiveness as KDH’s new Chief of Staff.”

Along with Dr. Sentongo’s appointment as Chief of Staff, there have been several other significant changes to KDH’s physician leadership:

• ​Long-serving Chief of the Emergency Department Dr. Jonathan Rathwell stepped down earlier this year after almost five years in the role, amid accolades for his dedication to excellence in patient care and his unwavering leadership during the pandemic.​
• In Dr. Rathwell’s stead, Dr. Tahereh Hosseini, an ER physician at KDH since 2017, has assumed the role of Interim Chief of the Emergency Department.
• A recent arrival to KDH, Dr. Chris Kirby has been appointed Chief of the Anesthesia Department, filling the vacancy left by Dr. Sentongo’s appointment.

The hospital’s CEO, Frank Vassallo, expressed his heartfelt appreciation to each of these doctors, commenting, “At KDH we are truly blessed with the caliber of the physicians who care for our patients in all departments; they have truly dedicated their lives to serving others.”​