Meet Heather Bach of the Medicine Hat Health Foundation

Story by Amelia Schofield | Photo by Leah Hennel
Alberta Health Services recognizes May as Health Philanthropy Month. Throughout the month, we’re celebrating our philanthropic partners who raise funds for healthcare across the province.
The Faces of Foundations profile series introduces you to leaders in healthcare philanthropy across Alberta. This week, we’re pleased to profile Heather Bach, executive director of the Medicine Hat Health Foundation.
Why did you become involved with the Medicine Hat Health Foundation?
After several years in retail management, which was a 24/7 365-day-a-year job, and having a growing family, I knew it was time for a change. To be honest, I began with the foundation through a position that was posted in our local newspaper, and I was the lucky candidate. I started in a major gifts role with the foundation and it was a huge career change. It was probably the scariest thing I’ve ever done in my life — to change after 16 years of being in my comfort zone — but I’m sure glad I did. Why is health philanthropy important to you?
It’s an honour to be a part of healthcare philanthropy, in my eyes. I have always had a fascination and interest in healthcare, but I didn’t think I was equipped emotionally to work as a healthcare professional. I have to admit that after high school I wanted to land in a healthcare field, that was sort of my dream, I just didn’t know where, or what or how. It’s not where I ended up and that’s OK. Now I have the best of both worlds. I get to support healthcare professionals through philanthropy and see all their great work, but I get to do it from an outside perspective. What does being a leader in healthcare philanthropy mean to you?
Being in healthcare philanthropy, I get to be on the positive side of healthcare and make an impact to our healthcare heroes. I also get to make a difference for my whole community because at the end of the day, everyone accesses healthcare at some stage in their life, so this is my way of being able to make a significant impact to those around me. I know the work of the foundation will affect them at some point and it’s an honour to be a part of that.
What recent foundation accomplishments make you most proud?
I’m proud that over the past number of years, our foundation has done nothing but grow, get stronger and make larger impacts in healthcare. We’re a growing team and have gotten to a level where we’re able to add capacity, so I’m proud of how far we’ve come as an organization, how we’ve gotten stronger and brought more impact to the community.
What initiatives are coming up for the foundation?
We’re currently campaigning to replace all the cardiac monitors in the Medicine Hat Regional Hospital to the tune of $1.2 million, so that’s what we’ve been quietly working on behind the scenes. We’re almost halfway there already and will go public with our campaign in the next couple of months.
What is the best way for Albertans to support the foundation?
We always encourage Albertans to donate to their local health foundation, but I think the other thing they can do is thank a healthcare hero. They do amazing work, and we want them to know we appreciate them. There are so many ways to show gratitude — a thank you card, a pat on the back, simply saying thank you — that can be so meaningful to the healthcare professionals in our communities.
For more information on the Medicine Hat Health Foundation, visit ourhealthfoundation.ca.