United in Faith - Meet Nawaz Tahir, St. Joseph’s New Board Chair
A key facet of Nawaz Tahir’s Muslim faith is giving back to the community, making his role as the new Chair of St. Joseph’s Health Care London’s Board of Directors a natural fit with his beliefs.
“What better way to give back then to volunteer my time and expertise at an organization like St. Joseph’s, which shares similar values as my faith such as charity, compassion, kindness and empathy.”
Nawaz has a long, personal history with St. Joseph’s, from the time he was ushered into this world by the caring hands of staff and physicians at St. Joseph’s Hospital, where he was born.
“Health care is something I’m very passionate about and I’ve always been connected and invested in St. Joseph’s. I believe it’s important for such an important community organization – a true anchor organization in London - to have a strong strategic direction and governance structure to help guide hospital operations.”
St. Joseph’s Board provides that governance, alongside the organization’s Senior Leadership Team. Made up of community volunteers from all walks of life and backgrounds, board members have professional expertise in fields such as medicine, finance and business. Nawaz is a litigation attorney, bringing his talents in developing clear arguments to his position as Chair.
“My skills as a lawyer provide me a good foundation to help advise St. Joseph’s leaders through complex decision making.”
Board members represent the people served by St. Joseph’s, a role Nawaz says they take very seriously.
“At the beginning of every board meeting, we take time to remember the stakeholders we are advocating for and we reflect on our responsibility to those individuals when making decisions. My hope is that our efforts have a positive impact on the culture of the organization as well as on patient and resident care.”
When asked what St. Joseph’s biggest strength is, Nawaz is quick to answer.
“That’s easy – the people and the culture. We have a diverse patient and staff population, but the culture at St. Joseph’s is unique and amazing. From our board and senior leaders, right across to our teams providing direct care, we treat the whole person, body, mind and spirit, in a way I haven’t seen before.”
Nawaz, a strong community advocate at both local and national levels in work to address Islamophobia, sees the differences in faith of the many individuals that contribute to St. Joseph’s as an opportunity to fully embrace a culture of equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging.
“When it comes to faith, I find there is a lot more that unites us than divides,” he says. “The legacy and philosophy of health care championed by the Sisters of St. Joseph to care for the most vulnerable in our society is a cornerstone in our community and one I believe brings people together. I hope to build on this philosophy during my term as Board Chair. In partnership with others, St. Joseph’s advocates for the physical, mental, spiritual and socio-economic health of everyone in our community. I’m most excited about expanding our role as an anchor organization, knowing that our connection with those we serve doesn’t end when they walk out our doors.”