Raising Up Women in Healthcare – A Conversation with Deborah Gillis, of the CAMH Foundation, and Carrie Fletcher, of CAMH

Today, your host Michelle Holden, Communications and Marketing at HIROC, speaks with Deborah Gillis, President and CEO of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Foundation, and Carrie Fletcher, VP of People and Experience at CAMH. Deborah and Carrie share the path that got them to where they are today and the important role that sponsors and champions have played in both of their lives. As former CEO of Catalyst, a global non-profit dedicated to advancing women in leadership, Deborah Gillis has spent much of her career focused on workplace equality and empowerment for women. She's been on all sides of the table and has seen the value of having champions who advocate for others. Throughout her career, Carrie Fletcher has spent time on the front lines of healthcare, in health information management, and today she's stepping up to the challenge of leading and supporting the staff at CAMH as VP of People and Experience. Carrie speaks to the importance of normalizing the conversation around mental health and what CAMH is doing to enhance staff collaboration and leadership development. Key Takeaways: [0:55] What inspired Deborah to pursue a career advocating for change [1:55] Why Deborah joined the CAMH Foundation and what she's focused on today [2:43] Deborah on the distinction between sponsorship and mentorship and the importance of having a sponsor [3:59] How Deborah has benefited from champions in her career and her advice for women looking for champions [5:40] Carrie's recent career shift to Vice President of People and Experience at CAMH, a journey that speaks to the role of champions and speaking up for those who have the skillset [8:18] How Carrie applies the clinical knowledge she gained in past experience to her current role in working with staff and with union partners [10:15] Research shows that women are over mentored and under sponsored. Deborah speaks to why mentorship is critical [13:01] Leadership development and skill recognition at CAMH [16:33] Normalizing the conversation around mental illness in the workplace [18:41] How CAMH is harnessing the power of data to help deliver better care for their patients and implementing practices that can be beneficial to external partners [21:45] Creating a psychologically safe workplace extends not only to the employee but to their broader family [23:12] Staff collaboration at CAMH and driving innovative thinking [31:10] What International Women's Day means to Carrie and Deborah Mentioned in this Episode: Catalyst CAMH CAMH Foundation Fast Company Listen to more interviews at HIROC.com. Follow us on Twitter, and listen on iTunes and Google Play Music. Email us at [email protected].