Rebecca Patterson | |
---|---|
Deputy Leader of the Canadian Senators Group | |
Assumed office October 31, 2023 | |
Leader | Scott Tannas |
Preceded by | Dennis Patterson |
Canadian Senator from Ontario | |
Assumed office November 21,2022 | |
Nominated by | Justin Trudeau |
Appointed by | Mary Simon |
Personal details | |
Born | June 15,1965 |
Political party | Canadian Senators Group |
Alma mater | University of Ottawa |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Canada |
Branch/service | Royal Canadian Navy |
Years of service | 1989–N/A |
Rank | Rear-admiral |
Rear-Admiral Rebecca Patterson, OMM MSM CD CHE (born June 15,1965) is a Canadian senator from Ontario. She was appointed to the Senate of Canada on November 21,2022,on the advice of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. [1] On January 12,2023,Patterson joined the Canadian Senators Group. [2]
Patterson is a registered nurse and a retired Rear Admiral in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). She is the first person with a military nursing background to ever lead at the rank of Flag (General) Officer in Canada.
Patterson enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces as a critical care Nursing Officer in 1989 under the Direct Entry Officer plan and held various leadership roles within the CAF. She obtained her diploma in nursing in 1987 from Niagara College and BScN / PCNP certificate from the University of Ottawa in 1997 (Summa Cum Laude). After an occupational transfer to Health Services Operations Officer in 1998,she went on to qualify as a certified health executive with the Canadian College of Health Leaders.
Patterson worked in many different domains of healthcare which include the provision of direct patient care,delivery and leading CAF medical education and training,overseeing and directing national level medical planning in support of CAF missions at home and abroad and leading a large CAF primary care health centre. In 2012,she assumed the position as Commander of 1 Health Services Group and was responsible for the provision of healthcare to CAF personnel in the west and north of Canada. In 2016,she was appointed as the Deputy Commander,Canadian Forces Health Services Group and was subsequently appointed to her current position as Director General Canadian Armed Forces Strategic Response Team- Sexual Misconduct,in 2018.
Patterson has had the privilege of serving with the CAF on overseas missions and has deployed as a member of Op SCALPEL with 1 Canadian Field Hospital during the Persian Gulf Conflict in 1991 (Saudi Arabia),Op DELIVERANCE in support of the Canadian Airborne Regiment in 1993 (Somalia),and Op ATTENTION with the NATO Training Mission –Afghanistan (Kabul) 2011-2012,where she was responsible for leading a multinational team tasked to assist the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police to re-establish their medical education and training system.
In February 2014,she was recognized for her work in Afghanistan and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal from the Governor General of Canada and was recently inducted as an Officer in the Order of Military Merit in 2018. She is also the recipient of numerous other honours and awards,including the Governor General’s Meritorious Service Medal,the Ontario Premier’s Award for Excellence in Health Sciences for Ontario College Graduates,and the Niagara College Canada Distinguished Alumni Award. In 2021,Patterson was inducted as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society for her contributions to aid seniors in long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic and to help women overcome barriers.
She is a founder and director of Soldiers Helping Soldiers,an organization that helps veterans who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
The Canadian Armed Forces are the unified military forces of Canada,including land,sea,and air commands referred to as the Canadian Army,Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force. The CAF also operates several other commands,including the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command,the Canadian Joint Operations Command,and the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. Personnel may belong to either the Regular Force or the Reserve Force,which has four sub-components:the Primary Reserve,Supplementary Reserve,Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service,and the Canadian Rangers. Under the National Defence Act,the Canadian Armed Forces are an entity separate and distinct from the Department of National Defence,which also exists as the civilian support system for the forces.
Carolyn Ann Bennett is a Canadian ambassador and retired politician. A member of the Liberal Party,she represented Toronto—St. Paul's in the House of Commons from 1997 to 2024,and was a cabinet minister in the governments of Paul Martin and Justin Trudeau. She was the minister of State for Public Health from 2003 to 2006,the minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations from 2015 to 2021 and the minister of Mental Health and Addictions from 2021 to 2023. In 2024,she became the Ambassador of Canada to the Kingdom of Denmark. Prior to entering politics,Bennett worked as a family physician for 20 years.
Eric William Hoskins is a Canadian physician and former politician who served as Ontario Minister of Health and Long-Term Care from 2014 to 2018. A member of the Liberal Party,he sat as a member of the Provincial Parliament (MPP) from 2009 to 2018,representing the electoral district of Toronto—St. Paul's in the Ontario Legislature.
Gale S. Pollock is a retired United States Army major general who served as the Deputy Surgeon General of the United States Army from October 2006 to March 2007,and also as chief of the Army Nurse Corps. She became acting Surgeon General of the United States Army for nine months following the 20 March 2007 retirement of her predecessor,Kevin C. Kiley,due to fallout from the Walter Reed Army Medical Center neglect scandal. She was the first woman and the first non-physician to hold the position.
Krystina Helena Jaczek is a Canadian physician and politician. A member of the Liberal Party,she currently represents the riding of Markham—Stouffville in the House of Commons and formerly served as the Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Receiver General for Canada.
Marilyn McHarg,is a humanitarian executive. She was President and CEO of Dignitas International,as well as a founding member and General Director of the Canadian section of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) / Doctors Without Borders,the world's leading independent medical humanitarian organization.
Nancy J. Lescavage is a retired American rear admiral who served as the 20th director of the Navy Nurse Corps and was the commander of Naval Medical Education and Training Command,Bethesda,Maryland.
Brigadier General Robin Umberg,Deputy Commander Clinical Services 3rd Medical Command,is one of several female United States Army general officers.
Brigadier General Carmelita Vigil-Schimmenti is a retired officer of the United States Air Force,who in 1985 became the first Hispanic female to attain the rank of Brigadier General. Vigil-Schimmenti was the Chief of the United States Air Force Nurse Corps,Office of the Surgeon General;Headquarters U.S. Air Force,Washington,D.C.
Jane Philpott is a physician,academic administrator,and former Canadian politician who represented the riding of Markham—Stouffville in the House of Commons. She was first elected in the 2015 federal election as a member of the Liberal Party and was appointed to the Cabinet of the 29th Canadian Ministry,headed by Justin Trudeau,on November 4,2015. On March 4,2019,she resigned from her cabinet position as President of the Treasury Board over the SNC-Lavalin affair. On April 2,2019,she and Jody Wilson-Raybould were expelled from the Liberal caucus in the aftermath of the controversy.
Jean-Robert Bernier is a Canadian military physician who served as the 38th Canadian Surgeon General and chief medical adviser to the North Atlantic Alliance as the 7th chairman of NATO's Committee of Chiefs of Military Medical Services (COMEDS).
Jennie Carignan is a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) officer who has served as Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) since July 2024. Born in Quebec,she is bilingual and graduated as a military engineer from the CAF’s Royal Military College Saint-Jean. She served as an officer in combat engineering regiments in various Canadian military actions in the 1990s and 2000s including:the Golan Heights;Bosnia;and Afghanistan. As a full colonel,Carignan became Commandant of the Royal Military College Saint-Jean in 2013.
Christine Theresa Whitecross,CMM,MSM,CD,is a Canadian retired lieutenant-general. A graduate of Queen's University and the Royal Military College of Canada,she has served in Germany,Bosnia,and Afghanistan. Whitecross has twice been named one of Canada's 100 most-powerful women. She was commandant of the NATO Defense College in Rome.
Merrilee K. Fullerton is a Canadian physician and former politician who represented Kanata—Carleton in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2018 to 2023. A member of the Ontario Progressive Conservative (PC) Party,Fullerton was the minister of training,colleges,and universities from 2018 to 2019,minister of long-term care from 2019 to 2021,and minister of children,community and social services from 2021 to 2023.
Rosemary Moodie is a Canadian neonatal physician who was appointed to the Senate of Canada on December 12,2018. Moodie is a neonatologist at the Hospital for Sick Children and Professor of pediatrics at the University of Toronto's Department of Pediatrics.
Flordeliz "Gigi" Osler is a Canadian Senator,physician,and assistant professor at the University of Manitoba. She was the 2018–2019 President of the Canadian Medical Association.
Nancy Malloy was a medical administrator and nurse for the British Columbian branch of the Canadian Red Cross. She participated in various international missions that took place at remote hospitals,often in dangerous areas. On December 17,1996 she was murdered together with five of her colleagues when on a mission in Chechnya,Russia. Posthumously,she was awarded both the Florence Nightingale Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Alex Ruff is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2019 federal election and re-elected in the 2021 Canadian federal election. He is a retired Colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).
Jennifer Wylie-Russell is a Canadian physician and the current Chief Medical Officer of Health for the province of New Brunswick,Canada. Her handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in New Brunswick brought her widespread visibility in Canada.
Operation Laser is a domestic operation of the Canadian Armed Forces for contingency planning and response in the event of a pandemic. Its three goals are:protecting CAF personnel and capability,assessing CAF capabilities to respond to a pandemic,and assisting other government departments in the event of a pandemic.