A strategic Senior Executive with over 35 years of leadership experience in the Canadian health care sector, and, more specifically, in both the MH and Substance Use and Addiction fields. Rita spent 21 years in the MH sector, 13 of which included operating a Psychiatric Hospital; and 16 years in the substance use and addiction sector.
Before retiring, Rita was CEO of CCSA for 8 years - Canada’s only national organization with a legislated mandate to address SU and Addiction -, established over 35 years ago. This role led to activities with accreditation bodies in Canada to improve the care and health outcomes of people who use drugs and to collaborative initiatives with International Organizations and partners including UNODC, WHO, INL, CICAD and EMCDDA. All of this latter work focused mainly on improving quality in substance use disorders treatment through the development of international, evidence-informed, quality standards and mechanisms; and on improving health outcomes for people who use alcohol and other drugs by improving the quality of services and supports they want and need.
Currently, Rita is the Global Lead for ICQ (International Consortium for Quality in Substance Use Disorders Treatment), an initiative of the Colombo Plan.