Canadian Nurses Association - New CEO

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Ms. Kaaren Neufeld, president of the Canadian Nurses
Association (CNA), is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Rachel Bard as chief executive officer of CNA effective January 5, 2009.
CNA is the national professional voice of registered
nurses, supporting them in their practice and advocating for healthy public policy and a quality, publicly funded, not-for-profit health system. As CEO, Ms. Bard will work to position nurses as leaders in the Canadian health system, while further defining and advancing the nursing discipline in the interest of the public. She will provide leadership and vision to drive policy agendas that focus on health human resources, health system renewal and global health and social justice. Through national advocacy and national regulatory policy work she will continue to build and articulate CNA’s vision for the future of health care.
Before joining CNA, Ms. Bard held various positions with the government of New Brunswick, namely deputy minister of environment, deputy minister of post-secondary education, training and labour, deputy minister of post-secondary education
and training, deputy minister of training and employment development, assistant deputy minister of public health and medical services with the Department of Health and Wellness, and assistant deputy minister responsible for post-secondary education
with the Department of Education. She has also worked as a nurse in mental health for over 27 years, holding a number of positions in the clinical, administrative and educative fields. Ms. Bard has been very active on the international and national scenes. She is past president of CNA and has represented Canada on the International Council of Nurses and on international working groups on the workforce and on health care. She was the Canadian delegate at the International Labour Conference – Youth Employment and on the Governing Board of the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation Development for the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation.