AHS salary disclosure places current president at top of list

Dr. Verna Yiu was the top earner in 2015 when she was still an AHS vice-president

Image | Verna Yiu

Caption: Yiu was appointed permanent president of AHS in May after serving in the interim role since January.

Two lab pathologists, a geriatrician and a community dentist were among the top 15 salary earners at Alberta Health Services last year.
Dr. Verna Yiu, now the health board's president, was the top earner last year when she was a vice-president seconded from the University of Alberta. Yiu earned $568,321 in base salary last year. She became AHS president last month after moving to the interim role in January.
Vicki Kaminski, the former AHS president and CEO, placed second with a salary of $537,999. Dr. Kevin Worry, director of the North Zone of AHS, had the third-highest base salary of $483,520.
Dr. Peter Craighead, a medical oncologist, placed fourth with earnings of $457,593.
Craighead was a zone clinical department head and academic head for oncology until September 2015. He continues his practice as a radiation oncologist.
Antonietta Paladino, the community dentist, earned a base salary of $410,204 in 2015, placing her 13th on the list. Roland Ikuta, Royal College Geriatrician, placed 10th, earning $457,593.
Lab pathologists Mirielle Kattar and Safwat Girgis earned $475,723 and $418,247 respectively.
Under the government's new disclosure rules, agencies, boards and commissions must reveal salaries of people making more than $125,000 a year by June 30. This is the first time many of these salaries have come to light.
Other high earners in the top 15 include 2 vice-presidents/medical directors, another zone medical director, and the associate chief medical officer.
Physicians on this list are compensated by salary. Lists for doctors who are paid by fee for service will be revealed at a later date. They won't be on the June 30th sunshine list because details on how to report them are still being worked out between the health and justice ministries.
Several more people in the top 15 are listed as physicians. They are medical oncologists working for AHS.
The salary disclosure list also reveals compensation for 10 vice-presidents. Dr. David Mador, vice-president and medical director, was the top earner of the vice-presidents behind Yiu, with a salary of $454,134.
The 10 vice-presidents earned a total of $3,656,903 in salary last year.