Past speakers
Laurent Duvernay-Tardif
Labelled by the Kansas City Star as “the most interesting man in the NFL,” Laurent Duvernay-Tardif became the first Quebecer in 15 years drafted to the NFL when he joined the Kansas City Chiefs in 2014. In 2020, the team would go on to win its first Superbowl victory in 50 years. He made history in 2020 when he was the first NFL player to opt out of the season as a precaution due to COVID-19 – choosing instead to work as a much-needed orderly in a long-term care setting in Montreal. His decision led to Sports Illustrated naming him one of their Sportspeople of the Year, he was a co-winner of the Lou Marsh Trophy for Canada’s top athlete and won the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award at the 2021 Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Awards. The exciting conversation with this esteemed young Canadian leader as he reflected on his career, life lessons, and experiences in long-term care during the pandemic.
Sandy Hudson, Political Activist and Co-Founder of the Black Lives Matter Movement Canada
Since CNA declared racism to be a public health emergency in June 2020, we have convened national nursing leaders to develop declarations of intent to tackle anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism and laid out steps to take on this complex injustice. Where and how to act have not been clear choices. As Sandy Hudson says, “Racism is far more complex and pervasive a phenomenon than how it is commonly understood.” To facilitate our action going forward, Sandy will provide a comprehensive introduction to what racism is, how to recognize it, how it operates and how to actively address it in organizations and as individuals. Engaging in anti-racist work for over 15 years, Sandy has developed the ideal atmosphere to learn about the difficult topic of racism. As an anti-racist scholar and activist, Sandy will also use first-person storytelling to engage participants to consider how they can shift into active anti-racist action throughout their lives. Join us for this landmark moment in Canadian nursing and take the chance to engage in direct conversation with Sandy!
Richard Booth, RN, Phd, Associate Professor at Western University
Dr. Richard Booth, RN, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing at Western University in London, Ontario. His program of research seeks to explore the relationships between human and technological interactions within health care and educational contexts. Dr. Booth’s main research streams include technological teaching-learning innovation for nursing education and digitally-enabled health care and nursing. His program of research is dedicated to exploring ways students and nurses learn, use, and repurpose health technology used in, and for, practice. And he is studying how current trends in the development of communication technology, artificial intelligence, automation/augmentation, and big data science have been examined and leveraged to generate future-forward ideas to support the health and wellbeing of people in an interconnected, rapidly changing technological landscape. In his most current work includes Social robots in the home: exploring the influence of intelligent non-human agents on human behaviour in domestic environments, and Evaluating the impact of social media technology on mental health awareness and health system use in youth.
André Picard, National Health Writer and Author
André Picard is one of Canada’s top health and public policy observers and commentators. He is a health reporter and columnist for The Globe and Mail, where he has been a staff writer since 1987. He is also the author of five bestselling books. He was named Canada’s first “Public Health Hero” by the Canadian Public Health Association and as a “Champion of Mental Health” by the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health, and he received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his dedication to improving health care.
André Picard, Canada’s award-winning author and journalist for The Globe and Mail, discussed his highly anticipated book Neglected No More at our first-ever speaker series, presented by the Canadian Academy of Nursing. In his timely new book, Picard reveals the full extent of the crisis in long-term care and offers an urgently needed prescription to fix a broken system.
Karen Furneaux, Olympic champion, hall of fame athlete and international speaker.
Karen is a three-time Olympian and two-time world champion in sprint kayaking and author of Strong Beauty: Power Up the Champion Within. She is a 2016 inductee into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame and has been named one of the province’s top 15 athletes. Participants leave Karen’s sessions feeling a powerful shift in momentum along with a sense of optimism and courage to implement new ideas into practice.
Laurie Gottlieb, RN, PhD ScD (hon), FCAHS, FCAN
Laurie Gottlieb is a Professor in the Ingram School of Nursing at McGill University. She holds the Flora Madeline Shaw Chair of Nursing at McGill and is the Nurse-Scholar-in-Residence at the CIUSSS-Centre Ouest (Jewish General Hospital) in Montreal, Visiting Professor of Leadership at the Canadian Nurses Association, and co-director of the International Institute of Strengths-Based Nursing and Health Care (SBNHC). She was the former director of McGill University’s Ingram School of Nursing and was the Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal of Nursing Research for 22 years. She is the developer of SBNHC that has evolved from the McGill Model of Nursing. She is the principal investigator of a multi-site, multi-disciplinary Partnership Grant entitled Transforming Nurses’ Work Environments Through a Strengths-Based Leadership and Management Training Program co-funded by the Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council and the Canadian Institute of Health Research.
Amie Archibald-Varley, RN, BScN, MN- CP Women's Health
Amie Varley, RN, BScN, MScN- CP Women's Health, received her Bachelor's degree from the University of New Brunswick in Nursing and her Masters Degree in Nursing from the University of Toronto (U of T). She also completed a collaborative Masters Degree program with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at U of T in Women's Health. Amie is a dynamic speaker, advocate and activist for nursing as a profession, mental health, health equity, Womxn's health and Womxn's rights. Her Master's degree focused on the mental health of postpartum Womxn and transgender medicine. She has worked as a nurse in many roles; Labour and Delivery Nurse, Maternal Child Nurse, Educator, Professional Practice Clinician, College/University Faculty and in Quality Improvement. Amie is passionate about helping others find their voice. "Issues such as harassment, bullying and gender discrimination have no place in healthcare. We must hold organizations to higher standards-- and hold them accountable for creating spaces where this misogyny, fear and inequity is rampant. It's time to fight for change and speak out our truths". Amie has co-moderated and facilitated many discussions in Advancing Health Equity. She brings communities together through “courageous conversations” on anti-racism and anti-black racism in healthcare.
Sara Fung, RN, BScN, MN, IBCLC, CAPM
Sara Fung received her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Western University and her Master's of Nursing from the University of Toronto. She is on the Research Advisory Board at the Conference Board of Canada and is a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM). She has been practicing as a registered nurse since 2007. Her expertise is in maternal child health, with clinical experience in obstetrics and the NICU. She has worked in both academic and community hospitals and home health as a bedside nurse, educator, advanced practice nurse and professional practice specialist. She is also a mother of two, resume writer/interview coach, and podcaster! Sara is passionate about issues such as anti- racism, health equity, mental health, improving working conditions for nursing and helping nurses find their career paths in a profession with so many opportunities!
Pam Hubley, RN, MSc, FCAN
Pam Hubley’s contributions to nursing & interprofessional practice, education and health care leadership have inspired many, advanced innovative models of care and fostered healthy, healing work environments. Her commitments to person & family centred care, collaborative partnerships and authentic presence are fundamental in her leadership. Pam is known as a trailblazer and change maker. She is an executive leader at SickKids who is known for her strengths-based, solution-oriented approach, commitment to team culture and overall positive influence. Pam is a Fellow of the J&J Wharton Nurse Executive program through the University of Pennsylvania and a graduate of the Rotman Advanced Health Leaders Program at the University of Toronto. She was inducted as a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Nursing in 2020.