My work as a clinician and leader in both the public and private healthcare spans four decades.

I am an avid learner and pursue knowledge that is personally transformative as well as professionally informative. I am an reader, writer and reflector, believing that I have a responsibility to live my life to the fullest. However, my richest learning has occurred through my lived experience. Life has a way of bringing many opportunities for growth. I have been very fortunate to have experiences both pleasant and challenging that have taught me ways of seeing and being that impact my approach as a clinician and leader.

One belief I hold is that leaning into whatever is happening is essential if we are to grow; whether the experience is imbued with joy or sorrow, enthusiasm or fear. Thus, finding ways to move into and through difficult experiences has been deeply transformative for me, informing my growth as a person and professional.

I have a both a Master’s Degree and a PhD in Leadership and Change (Healthcare Concentration). My research focused on understanding how Interpersonal Neurobiology influenced healthcare leaders practices, development, and identity.

In addition, I graduated from City University with a Masters of Arts Degree in Counselling Psychology in 2003. This degree provided me with opportunities to learn varied theories and skills in the areas of individual, couple, and family therapy.

My undergraduate degree was also from Antioch University, where I was able to widen my exploration of what it meant to be a clinician in the mental health field. Most particularly I was able to frame inquiries about the specialized field of eating disorders, through subjects such as literature, history, politics, anthropology, and the arts.

I started my journey into healthcare education in late adolescence, graduating in 1984 from the Psychiatric Nursing program at Wascana Institute of Applied Arts and Sciences, (now, Saskatchewan Polytechnic).

I completed a Certificate in Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) in 2012. Dr. Daniel Siegel, the field’s lead founder, taught this three-year, comprehensive course. In addition, I have attended and continue to participate in ongoing professional development opportunities offered by researchers and thought leaders in the field.