Skip to content

Weyburn health care worker running for council seat

Health care worker Sheila Sutherland has put her name forward to run for city council, as she wants to make a contribution to the community she and her family have recently taken up residence in.
Sheila Sutherland

Health care worker Sheila Sutherland has put her name forward to run for city council, as she wants to make a contribution to the community she and her family have recently taken up residence in.

She has lived in Weyburn since 2016, and works as a continuing care aide for the Saskatchewan Health Authority. Prior to coming here, she lived in B.C. and in Edmonton, and was not happy in the large urban centre with the high crime rates.

She looked at different communities in Saskatchewan, and came at first to live in Radville before moving in to Weyburn.

“I’ve always been interested in politics,” she said in an interview. “I’m a parent, and I’m interested in pretty much everything to do with the City.”

As a health care worker, she’s excited for the prospect of a new hospital to be built here, but is concerned about the number of doctors who have left the city.

If she’s elected, she would like council to look at ways to attract and keep more physicians here, as she knows a number of people who currently don’t have a family doctor.

Asked what would distinguish her from the other candidates running for a council seat, Sutherland said she can bring a fresh new perspective to council as someone who has recently moved to this city after searching through the province and looking at other communities.

“I would be a good choice for council because I know what decisions we had to make to find a city like Weyburn to live in,” said Sutherland. “I looked at Saskatchewan as a whole. I lived in Edmonton and I didn’t like living in a large city like that.”

She has two children, a son who is attending the Weyburn Comprehensive School, and a son in Grade 1 at Haig School. She noted she’s excited for her youngest to be entering the new school when it opens next year, and added she likes that Weyburn is quiet and safe compared to a large centre like Edmonton.

The biggest issue that she would like to have input on is the recruitment and retention of doctors in Weyburn. “That’s a big issue for many people in the city,” she said.