Who is coming

Dr. Doris Grinspun is Chief Executive Officer of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO), the professional association representing registered nurses, nurse practitioners. and nursing students in the province of Ontario, Canada’s largest jurisdiction. RNAO’s mandate is to advance healthy public policy and the role of registered nurses and nurse practitioners.

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Dr. Claudette Holloway was born in Barbados, grew up in Birmingham, England and has resided in Canada for many years. She has a bachelor’s degree from Ryerson, a master’s degree in nursing from D’Youville College, Buffalo, New York and a Doctorate in Health Administration from the University of Phoenix. She is also recently certified as a Health Executive by the Canadian College of Health Leaders.

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Lhamo Dolkar is a nurse practitioner (NP) at Lakeridge Health GAIN clinic, ensuring that our seniors are able to live in their own homes safely and independently. Dolkar is a second career nurse and brings her international health-care experience into her Canadian nursing career. She has worked across various sectors, such as multidisciplinary clinics, group homes as youth counselor, acute care, nursing home, public health, and community health care. 

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Natalia Kusendova-Bashta is the MPP for Mississauga Centre and the newly appointed Minister of Long-Term Care. Natalia is a registered nurse who has worked on the front line of our health-care system at the Etobicoke General Hospital in the emergency department, as well as the Vanier Centre for Women, Ontario’s only female provincial correctional facility. She also served as a policy and political action executive network officer for the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario’s Peel Chapter, and as a member of the Canadian Polish Congress National Executive Board.

Dr. Jill Andrew, PhD is the Member of Provincial Parliament for Toronto-St. Paul's. During her time as an MPP, Jill has served as the Culture Critic and the Critic for Women’s Social & Economic Opportunities among other parliamentary positions. Before politics, Jill was a child & youth worker and teacher, a student equity program advisor, a university lecturer on fashion diversity and author. She also worked as a journalist for many years covering careers, education, entertainment, and lifestyle beats.  Jill is also the co-founder of Body Confidence Canada home to the Body Confidence Canada Awards and Body Confidence Awareness Week recognized by two of Canada’s largest school boards. Her distinctions include multiple Canadian Ethnic Media Association awards, academic awards including the Patrick Solomon Memorial Award, a Lifetime Advocacy Award from the Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention, the 2022 Viola Desmond Alumni Award in honour of Andrew, Commfest's 2022 Making a Difference Award, the 2018 Person of the Year INSPIRE Award, the Nancy Ruth Award for her commitment to gender equity and being named one of Toronto’s 21 Most Inspirational Women of 2021 by Post City Magazine. In 2023, Jill was named one of Myseum Toronto’s 52 Women Who Transformed Toronto and was also recognized by CUPE, OFL and CBTU during Black History Month – the first time a living activist had received the special honour. Jill lives in Toronto with her partner Aisha Fairclough and their two cats Josephine Baker & Dorothy Dandridge.

Bonnie Crombie is Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party. She was mayor of Mississauga, Ontario’s third-largest city, for three terms, where she was known for her visionary leadership to create jobs, build complete communities and celebrate diversity. A mother of three, she was a business executive and previously served as a liberal member of Parliament and as a city councillor.

Aislinn Clancy is the MPP for Kitchener Centre. Born and raised in the Waterloo region, she was previously a city councillor for Ward 10 and a school social worker for 11 years. Committed to environmental stewardship and youth wellbeing throughout her career, she aims to take a collaborative approach as an MPP that puts the people of Kitchener Centre first.

Amelia was the first female Minister for Health for the Kingdom of Tonga, from 2019 to December 2021. Amelia led the response for the measles outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic for the Kingdom of Tonga, up to December 2021. For both emergencies, there were no reported deaths during her leadership tenure. Prior to that role Amelia was the national chief nursing officer. Her PhD work informed the development of the Tonga National Professional Standards for the Registered Nurse and is mandated within the Act 2021. Amelia is committed to championing and supporting the world’s largest health and care workforce ─ nurses and midwives, to transform health systems to promote health and well-being, keep the world safe, promote gender equity and serve the vulnerable. Amelia joined the World Health Organization as chief nursing officer in January 2023.

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Dr. Pamela Cipriano, an internationally recognised nursing leader, is the 29th president of the International Council of Nurses (ICN) and a professor at the University of Virginia’s School of Nursing and Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy in Charlottesville, VA. She previously served as dean of the UVA School of Nursing, ICN’s first vice president and two terms as the president of the American Nurses Association. She also has extensive experience as an academic medical center executive with a focus on improving the quality and safety of services and the work environment and well-being for all staff. Dr. Cipriano is well known, both in her own country, the United States of America, and internationally, as a strong advocate for the nursing profession. During her over 40-year career, she has led efforts to advance the role and visibility of nurses and increase nursing’s impact and influence on policy. Dr. Cipriano is a leader in the National Academy of Medicine’s Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience, which aims to prevent burnout and is addressing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the physical and mental health of all clinicians. She has received numerous awards and was named as a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing in October of this year.

Dr. Sandra Bibb is owner and cultural competence consultant of Sandra C. Garmon Bibb Consulting. She served 30 years in the United States Navy as an active-duty nurse and retired at the rank of Captain (0-6) in 2004. After retiring from the Navy Dr. Bibb served in several academic roles at the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland from July 2004 to July 2014; and served as dean and professor for the College of Health Professions at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas, until January 2020. She was installed as Sigma’s 35th President, for the 2023 to 2025 Biennium in November 2023.

Secretary Michelle DiEmanuele has spent her career in the public and private sectors leading large-scale service change and cultural transformation. Over 21 years in the Ontario Public Service (OPS), she worked in several ministries and served as Deputy Minister of Human Resources, Deputy Minister of Government and Consumer Services, and Associate Secretary of the Cabinet. Michelle returned to the OPS after more than a decade as President and CEO of Trillium Health Partners (THP). In those roles, she established the Institute for Better Health, led the largest voluntary hospital merger in Canada between Credit Valley Hospital and Trillium Health Centre, and led the organization through a global pandemic. Beyond a dedication to public service, Michelle has also served as vice president of Branch and Small Business Banking, Retail Markets/Human Resources at CIBC, and Vice President of Human Resources and Organizational Development at Brookfield Properties Ltd. She has been named one of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women, and received Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Order of Ontario.

Karima Velji is Chief of Nursing and Professional Practice and an Assistant Deputy Minister for Ontario. She is a registered nurse and has held senior leadership positions in several academic health science centres and has operated a successful consulting company. Dr. Velji is a sought-after consultant for system level projects and has led external reviews of several organizations. She is a surveyor with Health Standards Organization (HSO), Accreditation Canada.

Dr. Nathalie Boudreau has over 20 years of experience in health care, providing nursing leadership within community and academic teaching hospitals. Her experiences have been geographically varied, having worked in both urban and rural settings in Northern, Southern, and Eastern Ontario. Nathalie is a Metis Franco-Ontarian health-care leader who most recently held the position of vice president of clinical services and chief nursing executive at Winchester District Memorial Hospital in Winchester, Ontario. Born and raised in Northern Ontario, she understands the needs and challenges of education and health-care delivery in remote areas, and she has had the opportunity to work closely with Indigenous communities in Northern Ontario to support patient and community care.

Nancy Peroff-Johston is currently the manager of the Policy and Innovation Unit in the Nursing and Health Professionals Branch of the Ministry of Health where she leads health-care policy and program work to support the education, recruitment, retention and distribution of nurses in Ontario. As a health-care policy leader and public health nurse by background, Nancy has contributed to health system transformation initiatives in the Ontario government for almost 20 years in areas such as health human resources, infectious disease prevention, pandemic response, and the public health, home and community care, and the long-term care sectors.

RN Lee Turley is a registered nurse on Manitoulin Island. He has had the privilege of working in a few health-care fields, starting his practice as a registered practical nurse in long-term care prior to graduating with his BScN from Nipissing University. Throughout his career, he has focused on holistic health care to assist individuals on their healing journeys. He has been fortunate to work in senior leadership positions within long-term care, home care and community care settings, including in some First Nations communities on Manitoulin Island. He presently works in primary care as a registered nurse at the Northeastern Manitoulin Family Health Team, and he was thrilled to obtain his RN Prescriber designation. He cherishes healthy connections and educational opportunities, and loves spending time with his husband, daughter and family, exploring the surrounding world.

NP Melissa Germann (she/her) is a Mohawk woman who has been working at De Dwa Da Dehs Nye>s for the past four years. She has found great pride in not only helping her patients reconnect to their Indigenous roots, but also herself. Her grandmother was a residential school survivor and as such her family was a victim of colonization and experienced the loss of traditional knowledge. Professionally, she obtained her masters in nursing: nurse practitioner degree at Athabasca University and her bachelor of science in nursing at McMaster University. She splits her time between primary care in the clinic and at the mobile health clinic working in encampments. She is very passionate about equal access to medical care for all despite barriers of homelessness, substance use or cultural bias. Personally, her greatest title is being a mother to three beautiful children and she enjoys all that comes with it.

Tania La Fleur, RN BScN, is a registered nurse currently working at Markham Stouffville hospital. She also works as a clinical supervisor for Seneca Polytechnic. Driven by her passion for health literacy and chronic disease management, she specializes in diabetes education. Tania was also on an expert panel guiding development of a forthcoming RNAO best practice guideline addressing anti-Black racism, and will co-chair the upcoming New RN Interest Group. In her spare time Tania enjoys reading, working out, playing the piano for her local community church and experiencing fine dining. 
 

Gurleen Matharu, manager of the Nursing Programs Unit at Ontario’s Ministry of Health, oversees key initiatives in nursing education and recruitment. With over a decade of experience, she excels in health system transformation through innovative policy and large-scale program development. Gurleen holds a Master of Public Health from Queen’s University and a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Waterloo. Her expertise in program delivery and commitment to establishing strong partnerships drive impactful change across the province. Gurleen is passionate about delivering excellent patient care and continues to practice as a pharmacist in her community.

Nevine Bekhit is a family nurse practitioner with an expertise in gerontology and palliative care. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at UNB/Humber College second entry program in Toronto, Ontario, and then earned a Master of Science Family Nurse Practitioner at D’Youville University, Buffalo, NY.  She recently completed a Comprehensive Advanced Palliative Care Education (CAPCE) Program with Hospice Niagara. Nevine has a medical background as an IMG; she completed a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, and earned a Master of Forensic Medicine at Alexandria University, Egypt, and a Master of Family Medicine at Suez Canal University, Egypt.

Fatima recently graduated from McMaster University School of Nursing. She is currently a new graduate working in the Neurosciences and Trauma Unit at SickKids. Learning about the brain is something that is very fascinating to her. She looks forward to seeing where her nursing career takes her with this speciality. 

Sallie Hammond worked for 44 years as a registered nurse and has been an RNAO member for 17. She also worked as a district midwife in Johannesburg, South Africa as part of the Queen Victoria Maternity Hospital Outreach Community Service. As an RN, she worked for 15 years on the High Risk Ante-Natal Unit at St. Joseph’s Hospital and eight years on psychiatry at South St./Victoria Hospital. When she was 62, she started a new job as a certified grief counsellor with a degree in religious studies and a post-degree certificate in grief/bereavement studies. She worked for a funeral home in London as a facilitator for a grief/bereavement support group (Journey Through Loss) for 12 years. As well, she has a private grief counselling practice for the past 14 years. Her work as a private grief counsellor has been pro bono as many of her clients live on welfare, in subsidized housing and use the food banks. Her husband and her little family immigrated to London, Ontario in 1974.

Allison has worked in the Ontario Public Service for over twenty years. As director of the Health Workforce Regulatory Oversight Branch, Allison is responsible for the oversight of the health workforce and most notably, the 26 regulated health professions governed by the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991. She has worked extensively on expanding the scope of practice of several regulated health professions and has been involved in federal/provincial/territorial issues related to entry to practice, health professional regulation and labour mobility. Allison’s team is responsible for the development and implementation of the College Performance Measurement Framework which for the first time in Ontario and across the country, measures the performance of the health regulatory colleges. Under her leadership, her team was also responsible for the development of a new oversight regime for health and social care professions in Ontario called the Health and Supportive Care Providers Oversight Authority. This new regulatory authority will begin registering personal support workers later this year.