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Hope Air’s chief executive officer, Doug Keller-Hobson, received the Air Transport Association of Canada’s (ATAC’s) 2018 Outstanding Achievement Award for the work he’s done to connect Canadians with the medical care they need.
This distinguished award recognizes the ATAC member who, through participation in ATAC and other activities, has demonstrated a very high level of service and performance of benefit to aviation in Canada.
Since 2005, Keller-Hobson has served as CEO of Hope Air, the only national charity that provides Canadians in financial need with free travel to medical care far from home. Hope Air provides a vital service that allows Canadians to access appropriate healthcare regardless of where they live. During his tenure the organization has grown substantially; providing 2,104 flights in 2006 compared to 12,684 travel arrangements in 2017.
“The distance and the cost of travel from rural areas to the large mega-hubs where we’ve concentrated healthcare can be formidable,” said Keller-Hobson. “It’s been an honour to work with ATAC and their generous members to make a real impact on the communities they serve.”
Keller-Hobson accepted the award at the annual ATAC Conference and Tradeshow that took place in Vancouver, B.C., in November.
Hope Air has arranged more than 130,000 flights since its founding in 1986. It is supported by many of Canada’s national and regional airlines. Twenty-nine per cent of Hope Air’s patients report that without the charity’s assistance, they would have cancelled or rescheduled their appointments. Hope Air allows families to focus on what’s truly important — their health.
