We are Niagara Health is a series of stories that celebrates the incredible people working and volunteering in our organization and how they make a difference in the lives of patients and coworkers every day.
Heather Paterson, Executive Vice-President of Clinical Operations, wanted to be a nurse since she was a young child. Her contributions to healthcare have earned her a Women in Business Awards nomination.
Long before Heather Paterson set foot in a hospital to care for patients, she was already picturing herself there.
“If you ask my mom, she’ll tell you I always wanted to be a nurse,” Paterson says. “It was all I talked about. I never veered off it.”
Years later, the Executive Vice-President of Clinical Operations at Niagara Health is manifesting something else: recognition for a career serving her community on the frontlines of healthcare.
Nominated by her peers, Paterson is a finalist in the Excellence in the Public Sector category of the 2025 Women in Business Awards. The category recognizes a woman working in government or the broader public sector who’s had a positive impact on their community through their work, has created positive change in the public sector or has gone above and beyond on the job to enrich the lives of others.
“It’s humbling,” Paterson says of the nomination. “You focus on the daily work, but you don’t understand the impact you have on people. People see you in a different way than you see yourself and it was nice for someone to nominate me.”
It wasn’t long after imagining herself in a nurse’s uniform that Paterson started laying the groundwork for a career of looking after patients and their families in a variety of roles at Niagara Health. Her path was founded on a desire to be helpful and make a difference locally.
At 13, she volunteered at the hospital as a candy striper. After high school, she studied nursing at university before immersing herself in one of the most stressful work environments: the emergency department at the Niagara Falls Hospital, starting in 1998.
“I don’t take for granted the importance of the seat I sit in and how people depend on me to ensure access to care for our community."
She loved every minute of it, making lifelong friends with her colleagues and saving lives in the process.
“Working in the emergency department was really fulfilling,” Paterson recalls. “The work is fast-paced and unpredictable, but the environment is highly collaborative, fostering a strong sense of teamwork.”
After five years, she had the opportunity to care for patients and families in a different capacity as a discharge planner at the Fort Erie and Port Colborne sites.
That role afforded Paterson the chance to attend conferences and influence quality initiatives. It opened her eyes to what more she could do for the organization.
Her next rung on the professional ladder was in a managerial role in complex care, marking the start of a series of progressive leadership roles that would lead to the helm of clinical operations on Niagara Health’s executive team in 2021.
Her appointment coincided with one of the most challenging times in healthcare – the COVID-19 pandemic. But even on the darkest days, there were bright moments that served as beacons, keeping Paterson and her entire team focused on their purpose.
Teams collaborated with each other and worked together with diligence and compassion. They partnered with other organizations across the region and province to ensure everyone received the care they needed.
Through it all, Paterson never lost sight of her guiding goal to help others.
“I don’t take for granted the importance of the seat I sit in and how people depend on me to ensure access to care for our community,” she says. “It’s all around that.”
Putting those words into action, Paterson strives to create an environment where people feel comfortable to speak up, especially when it can improve the patient or employee experience.
“That’s how you get fresh ideas,” she notes. “The frontline sees it, they experience it. They have to be able to come to you and say, ‘I think we can do it better. I have a couple of ideas.’”
As she helps Niagara Health transform care, Paterson holds onto those childhood dreams that set her on a path to donning an official nurse’s uniform and attend to the needs of her community.
“Why I’ve been successful, I think, it's because I have always remained grounded to my core values,” Paterson says. “I am here for the patients and the people who serve them.”
