Penny Ballem, Chair of the Finance & Audit Committee

Board of Directors

Since her graduation from UBC with her MD in 1978, Penny Ballem, MD FRCP FCAHS, has had a diverse career in the health and government sector as a senior administrator, academic medical practitioner and teacher/researcher.

From 1985 to 1991 Dr. Ballem served as the Deputy Medical Director of the Canadian Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service for BC and Yukon. For the next 10 years, she served as the Senior Vice President, responsible for operations at BC Women’s Hospital and Sunny Hill Health Centre. In 2001, Dr. Ballem was appointed Deputy Minister of Health for the Province of BC. She was the longest-serving Deputy Minister in the Health portfolio (2001-2006) in BC and one of the longest in Canada.

From 2008 to 2015, Dr. Ballem served as the City Manager of the City of Vancouver. During her tenure as City Manager, the City of Vancouver hosted the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Building on this experience, Dr. Ballem worked with key local partners to found Sport Hosting Vancouver Partnership which works to attract and organize national and international sporting events in the city. Recent events include the Grey Cup (2011, 2014), Davis Cup ties (2012-2014), FIFA Women’s World Cup (2015), the Rugby 7’s World Cup (annual event starting in 2016), the 2016 World Masters Games and the Vancouver Showcase NCAA Basketball Tournament in 2017.

Dr. Ballem is a Clinical Professor of Medicine at UBC, a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, and a recent appointee as a Senior Fellow in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Institute for Health System Management and Evaluation at University of Toronto. She has received significant public recognition for her work in medicine and public service including the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal for Public Service, the 2012 Wallace Wilson Award at UBC for High Ethical Standards and Leadership in the Profession, the Marion Powell Award from Women’s College Hospital for leadership in women’s health, and the Cannell Award from the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada for her contributions to leadership in reproductive health and others.

In addition to being a member of the Tennis Canada Board, she also serves on the StreetoHome Foundation Board and the Heart and Stroke Foundation National Board.