2015 Regional Nursing Workshop – Keynote Speaker Biography
Opening Keynote Speaker:
Dr. Wayne Corneil
Dr. Wayne Corneil is an Adjunct Professor at the Telfer School of
Management and an Associate Scientist in the Institute of Population
Health at the University of Ottawa. His recent research has been
focused on resiliency coaching in emergency response organizations.
Since 2004, he has been involved in several major research projects
on executive health, leadership during crises, and the psychosocial
impacts of disasters and terrorism. Dr. Corneil was an adjunct faculty
member at the Canadian School of the Public Service from 1996 –
2014 where he developed several executive leadership programs for
senior government officials including leading in times of crises and
crisis communications.
As the CEO of SantePlus Research Associates, Dr. Corneil is a consultant on emergency and
crisis management to numerous government organizations at the federal, provincial and
municipal level. He has worked with a variety of NGO’s and private sector organizations to
assist in their organizational readiness for service continuity capacities. He also conducts
research and program evaluation on psychosocial interventions and training programs in
resilience. More recently he has been working with organizations to establish Mental Health in
the Workplace programs.
Prior to his retirement from the Public Service of Canada in 20014, Dr. Corneil spent 32 years in
a variety of senior executive positions in Health Canada at the regional, national and
international levers with responsibilities for Occupational Health & Safety, and Quarantine and
Emergency health Services. Some career highlights include the creation of the Employee
Assistance Program for federal department and agencies, and setting up and coordinating the
traumatic stress response for the Federal Government of Canada for such events as the
Gander and Swiss Air crashes.
For twenty years up to 2009 Dr. Corneil also had a private clinic practice specializing in posttraumatic stress and work related stress for emergency response personnel, healthcare
practitioners, executives and senior officials.