Neil joined the Board in 2019. Neil is a Canadian Armed Forces veteran with a keen interest in Emergency Management having obtained a master's degree in Disaster and Emergency Management from Royal Roads University.
As a father of four, much of his time is invested in their activities and community activities within the Township of Whitewater Region.
Matthew Neadow, Vice-Chair
Matthew is serving in his second three-year term on the Board and is Acting Chair of the Business, Technology, and Outdoor Training Department at Algonquin College. He brings more than 20 years of experience in public sector Information Technology, supporting healthcare, mental health, and private sector organizations across Renfrew County. An Ottawa Valley native, he lives in Laurentian Valley with his wife and two sons.
Sabine Mersmann, President and CEO
Since November 1, 2022, Sabine has held the position of President and CEO after holding a series of progressive leadership roles over the past 26 years. Educated as an Occupational Therapist in Germany, Sabine moved to Canada in 1986. For 13 years she worked in various clinical roles as part of the team at Renfrew County’s Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) before being hired by PRH in 1999 as Director of the hospital’s new Rehabilitation program. The next 13 years were spent in Clinical Director roles at PRH for a wide variety of programs. In addition, she helped to lead the major capital expansion in the early 2000s, while helping bring much-needed services closer to home such as cardiac rehab, systemic therapy and new programs serving our geriatric population.
In 2012, Sabine moved in the position of Vice-President of Patient Services, Seniors, and Community Care where she was a leader in quality and patient safety and was pivotal in the organization-wide implementation of Lean management. Since January 2021, Sabine served as Senior Vice-President of Clinical and Support Services, Partnerships and Integration.
Beth Brownlee, Vice-President of Clinical Services, Chief Nursing Executive
Since May 2021, Beth has held the position of Vice-President of Clinical and Support Services and CNE (Chief Nursing Executive) at the Pembroke Regional Hospital.
In 2005, Beth joined the Rehabilitation team as a Clinical Educator with our District Stroke Centre. Since then, Beth has held multiple progressive leadership roles as a Clinical Manager and Clinical Director in Rehabilitation, Medicine, Ambulatory Clinics, Surgery/Operating room and Labour and Delivery Program. As Pembroke Regional Hospital’s cancer care facilitator Beth supported many initiatives allowing quality cancer care closer to home and in 2012 Beth lead the successful launch of our Lean Management journey.
Dr. Declan Rowan, Chief of Staff
Dr. Declan Rowan has served as Chief of Staff at Pembroke Regional Hospital since July 2025. He is a Family Physician with extensive clinical and physician leadership experience, having practiced medicine in both hospital and community settings for more than two decades. Prior to his appointment as Chief of Staff, Dr. Rowan held several senior leadership roles at Pembroke Regional Hospital including Chief of Hospitalist Medicine. He has also played key leadership roles regionally, serving as Co-Chair of the Ottawa Valley Ontario Health Team Steering Committee and Primary Care Lead with the Champlain Regional Cancer Centre. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors for the Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association. Dr. Rowan is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and holds multiple leadership credentials, including a Master's Certificate in Physician Leadership and advanced training in analytics and complexity-informed leadership. Throughout his career, he has been committed to advancing high-quality, patient-centred care, strengthening physician engagement, and supporting integrated health system planning across the region.
Dr. Cameron Leafloor, President of Professional Staff
Debbie Wegner, PRH Auxiliary President
Lisa Edmonds, PRH Foundation Chair
As a local business and community leader, philanthropist and EGM Insurance CEO Lisa Edmonds has been a long-time champion of the Pembroke Regional Hospital and the PRH Foundation. Helping to steer the planning of the annual Black and White Gala every year since its inauguration in 2002, Lisa joined the PRHF Board of Directors in 2017, and currently serves as PRHF Board Chair.
Suli Adams, Director
Suli retired from a career in research science which included clinical trials for cancer treatment, the development of PCR technology, and research of diseases at a genetic level using human DNA nuclear and mitochondrial, at NRC and at UWO. More recently, she worked at CNL as a Root Cause Analyst, a Nuclear Oversight Auditor and finally as a Regulatory Specialist for the NRU Reactor. Suli is passionate about contributing to the local community and has volunteered for PSP and PMFRC. Prior to the pandemic, Suli volunteered for employment services in Petawawa and taught ESL under the citizenship program for newcomers to the area. Suli is the past Co-Chair for the Pembroke Diversity Committee. Currently, Suli assists the Local Immigration Partnership for Lanark and Renfrew counties with many of their cultural initiatives.
Clay Deighton, Director
In his current Director role he is part of the Quality and Patient Safety Committee. Clay is a Program Officer within the Ethics and Business Conduct Department at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories located in Chalk River, Ontario. Clay has a Master's of Business Administration from Royal Roads University of Victoria, B.C. and has a designation of a Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional - International through the Compliance Certification Board of Minneapolis, MN. Clay has a keen interest and has held past positions in continuous process improvement initiatives where he holds a Master Black Belt through Sigma Pro. of Denver, CO.
Dr. Colin Macpherson, Director
Colin practiced full spectrum family practice in Pembroke from 1985 until retiring in 2021 and was on staff at PRH for 28 years. He was the Board Chair of the West Champlain Family Health Team Board of Directors until 2019 and recently re-joined their Board as a member in 2023. He was previously involved on the PRH Board of Directors when he served as the President of Professional Staff at PRH from 2003-2004 and Chief of Staff from 2000-2003. He is looking forward to giving a voice to the community's primary care needs and how those can be integrated with hospital programs to give the best service possible to our area.
Constance McLeese, Director
Constance has a PhD in Theology from the University of Montreal. She has worked in education for over 35 years as a teacher and administrator, most recently as the CEO of the Flin Flon MB School Division. Constance has lived and worked all across Canada and Europe. She has volunteered with a variety of organizations including the Kiwanis Club, library boards, theatre boards and professional organizations such as OSSTF, OPC, and MASS. Retirement has offered the opportunity for deeper involvement in her community. She shares seven children with her husband.
Shelley Sheedy, Director
Shelley is an active clinician, utilizing critical analysis as a Chairperson of the College of Nurses' Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee. Additionally, she uses her extensive healthcare knowledge and formal education, including a Masters in Leadership Studies, in her faculty role that certifies Administrators through the Long-Term Care Executive Leadership Program. Shelley was the Director of Long Term Care for the County of Renfrew Long Term Care Homes from 2016-2021 where she provided oversight of the operations of two large long term care homes - Bonnechere Manor and Miramichi Lodge.
Richard Wilson, Director
Richard is a Chartered Accountant (CPA), retired from his position as Executive Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer at The Ottawa Hospital, who wishes to continue to contribute and share the knowledge he has gained over his long career in heath care.
Richard has a deep understanding of hospital financing and governance and has held positions on the boards of the Health Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC) and the Eastern Ontario Laboratory Association (EORLA). He is currently Board Chair of Healthcare Collaborative Benefits. Richard lives in Rolphton, which is at the far reaches of our service area.
Roger retired as Director of Education for the Renfrew County District School Board in 2017 completing a career of 35 years in public education. In his eight years as director, he worked directly with the Board of Trustees to develop and implement a multi-year strategic plan that brought district-wide improvements to student achievement and well-being. In addition to his many years with the Renfrew Board, he served as Chair of the Eastern Ontario Staff Development Network, was a member of the Institute for Educational Leadership and represented the Eastern Ontario Region on the Executive of the Council of Ontario Directors of Education.
Since his retirement, he’s provided private consulting for several organizations and companies in the education sector specializing in Project Management, Strategic Planning, Senior Executive Recruitment and Performance Appraisals and Political Advocacy. In addition, he served for three years as Vice-President, K-20 for the Canadian Publishers’ Council.
Dave has lived in the Pembroke with his wife and 3 children for almost 20 years. He is currently a Principal with the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board and has had various teaching and leadership roles with the school board. Dave and his family are actively involved is several community events and extra curricular activities. You can find him in the local rinks, at the soccer field or enjoying all of the outdoor spaces that the Ottawa Valley has to offer. In his free time, he loves to golf, play Mens league basketball or take his dog for a hike.