Chief Executive Officer – Canadian Nurses Association, RN, M.Sc., FAAN
Presenting on: Wednesday October 20, 2021
Session Title: Government relations and policy change: the importance of advocacy for nursing
Session Description: The session will provide an overview of what is government relations, advocacy and lobbying. We will provide an example of a government relations campaign (MAID) and also discuss the importance and how nurses can be advocates for policy change.
Speaker Biography: With four decades of progressive experience in the health-care system, Mike Villeneuve has worked in all the domains of nursing practice. He was appointed chief executive officer of CNA in June 2017. In his role, he is helping to implement a forward-leaning vision for professional nursing in Canada and the related services needed at CNA to support that transformation. Since 2000, Mike has held many teaching, executive and consulting roles. Prior to returning to CNA as CEO, Mike led his own consulting firm serving organizations, universities, unions, and government across Canada and internationally. Mike is one of three authors of CNA’s centennial history book. Mike also is the author of Public Policy and Canadian Nursing: Lessons from the Field (2017), the first Canadian text focused on nursing and public policy. He is proud to serve on the Board of Directors at Winchester District Memorial Hospital—one of Ontario’s highest-performing small community hospitals. Mike was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 2019.