Introducing Samantha Brooks, our Base Manager in Sioux Lookout. Join us as we explore her incredible journey, her impactful role, and the reasons behind her decision to work in Northern Ontario.
 
Can you start by introducing yourself, how long you’ve been at Ornge, and your current role at Ornge?
 
My name is Samantha Brooks and I’ve been with Ornge for just over three years as the Base Manager for Ornge’s Sioux Lookout Base as well as overseeing the Mental Health Team since April of this year
 
Can you describe what you do in your position?
 
Being a Base Manager means you’re a bit of a jack of all trades. Some of my routine responsibilities include attending meetings such as Air Medical Resource Management (AMRM) sessions with the staff and operational meetings to ensure everything across the province is running smoothly. But my biggest responsibility is being there to support the staff and to make sure they have everything they need to do their job; their work is essential to everything that Ornge stands for.
 
What education have you gone through before and during your career?
 
My educational background is in Nursing. I always knew I wanted to go into the healthcare industry, but I was never quite sure exactly what I wanted to do within it. Nursing has opened doors I never would have expected and has been such a versatile field, allowing me to work in a number of different roles. Moving into management positions I have been fortunate to take a variety of different leadership courses which I hope have allowed me to be a more effective leader and support to staff.
 
What positions did you hold before working at Ornge?
 
I worked as a nurse in Ottawa before moving to Sioux Lookout. At the Meno Ya Win hospital, in Sioux Lookout, I was a frontline nurse, worked in home care services, and eventually moved into the management side of healthcare. I became the patient care manager, then the Director of Patient Care Services, and finally I was the Chief Nursing Executive before I made the jump to Ornge
 
Following the chaos of navigating healthcare practice through a pandemic, I was feeling a need to look at a career change while staying in the healthcare industry. Throughout my time at Meno Ya Win I always had great interactions with Ornge so when the Base Manager position became available I was extremely interested. Moving out of my comfort zone has proven to be both exciting and rewarding and I am very happy to have been given the opportunity to join the team at Ornge.
 
How do you use your experience and familiarity with the community to aid you in leading the Sioux Lookout base?
 
In Sioux Lookout, we provide service to roughly 35,000 Indigenous peoples in remote settings. Having worked so many years in Sioux Lookout, I’ve been able to gain plenty of experience in the traditional practices that you have to keep in mind when you are providing healthcare services to the Indigenous population. That includes making sure you are culturally respective and supporting people in the specific ways they need to be supported. My connections with some of the northern communities helped me develop a strong respect with the clientele we provide service to. This respect translates over to the staff working at the base as well as across the province. Being creative in the way that we manage our day-to-day activities has also come in handy as no two days are the same in any healthcare setting!
 
Why did you choose to work in Sioux Lookout?
 
Originally, I moved here from Ottawa because of my husband who had a job opportunity in Sioux Lookout. We were only planning on staying for a year, until the construction of the new hospital, Meno Ya Win was announced. Wanting to be part of the new build we planned on staying for a few extra years which has now become 17. Remaining in Sioux Lookout has been an easy choice given the friendships and connections we had made in the community. The work we do here is extremely rewarding and the environment is so enjoyable I ultimately decided this is now home to me, with no aspirations of ever leaving.
 
What would you say to someone apprehensive about moving to Sioux Lookout?
 
I speak to a lot of staff before they come to Sioux Lookout and I tell them that we actually have all the amenities you need here. We might not have the big-name restaurants or the big box stores, but if you’re looking for a town with beautiful lakes and beautiful countryside, Sioux Lookout is the place to be. The town itself is super inviting and the people here are welcoming.
 
The Ornge base in Sioux Lookout is amazing. All the staff are welcoming, and we try to make the people you work with feel like family. Many of the staff here are far away from their family so we have a network of people who support each other very well. If anyone were to ever need anything, I’m sure that they would be more than comfortable to call on their colleagues.
 
In your opinion, why is Ornge important to Ontario’s healthcare system?
 
Ornge is the backbone of access to care. There’s a large population in Northern Ontario that would not be able to access healthcare services if it were not for Ornge. From a critical care standpoint, Ornge provides a superior service that ensures patients get the care that they require efficiently. Even in Southern Ontario, hospitals need to transfer critical care patients between sites and if Ornge wasn’t there to support that we would see negative outcomes in patient care as well as bottlenecks to access.
 
Simply put, Ornge is integral in ensuring that patients have access to the care they need across the province. Ontario is such a large province that there isn’t an opportunity for each town or city to have all the specialty services that somebody might need, so having a transport service that can get you to that access to care is important.
 
What is the most important or most memorable thing you have learned at Ornge?
 
I think the most memorable thing is hearing the feedback from patients who have been transported by Ornge or who have had loved ones transported by Ornge. Learning how Ornge impacts the lives of many people is very rewarding. Even when outcomes may not be what is expected, it is comforting to know those in need are getting the best chance to receive timely access to care by an extremely skilled team.
 
It makes me proud to be a part of Ornge and I am proud of the frontline staff who work every day to make sure patients get the care they need, when they need it.
 


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At Ornge, our staff work every day around the clock to ensure the patients of Ontario receive the best care available. Learn more about the people behind #teamornge.

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