Nurses build on their legacy at RNAO's 101st Annual General Meeting

TORONTO, May 28, 2026 /CNW/ - More than 600 nurses and allies will gather in-person in Toronto on May 28 and 29 for the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario's (RNAO) 101^st Annual General Meeting (AGM). The theme – Building on our legacy: Nurses powering the future – will frame the presentations and conversations, and inspire registered nurses (RN), nurse practitioners (NP), nursing students and friends of nursing who join in person and virtually from around the world.

"RNAO's AGM brings together nurses who are advancing change every day, whether educating the next generation, providing direct care, leading teams and organizations, or pursuing research and policy," says President NP Lhamo Dolkar, who presided over last year's centennial anniversary. "When we gather to share our experiences and ideas, we create space to listen, learn and celebrate one another. We will discuss the present and make decisions that will shape the future of our profession – while inspiring the next generation of nurses to lead with courage, evidence, compassion and innovation."

"Exchanging knowledge, challenging ideas and strengthening our collective voice – that's what the AGM is all about. Members will debate and vote on resolutions (proposals that guide RNAO action on key issues) ranging from mental health supports in long-term care, to providing tools for RN prescribing, food security among nursing students, and curriculum on planetary health. By making decisions together, we leave the annual meeting determined to act on matters that affect nurses, the nursing profession and the health of the people in communities across Ontario and globally," says RNAO CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun. "RNAO and its more than 57,000 members are determined to strengthen the nursing workforce and work environments, and create a stronger, more equitable health system that accounts for social and environmental determinants of health and wellbeing."  

RNAO President Dolkar will chair the two-day event, leading discussions during the Friday morning business agenda and the afternoon resolution consultation session. Dolkar will introduce the new board of directors for 2026-2027. She will provide her final president's address and then hand the reins to incoming President Sue LeBeau.

"I am truly honoured to take on this role. As a member since my student days, I have seen RNAO's power in bringing nurses' collective voices together to drive meaningful change," LeBeau says. "I'm excited to continue building on that momentum – listening to members, strengthening collaboration and advancing evidence-based advocacy in speaking out for nursing and speaking out for health."

Throughout the day on May 28 – and in keeping with RNAO's long-standing tradition to engage and inspire a new generation – nursing students gathered at the association's home office to participate in leadership meetings. They joined special guests to tour and officially unveil four collaborative working spaces created to honour RNAO's commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. In these spaces, visitors celebrated the association's collaborations on Indigenous health, 2SLGBTQI+ health, Black health, and its role in leading change.

Participants were part of Indigenous blessings and smudging by RNAO Knowledge Keeper Dr. Tecumseh (Ed) Connors and RN Maxine Lesage. Nokomis (Grandmother) Vivian, from Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, a First Nation community on Ontario's Manitoulin Island, also joined the pair for the smudging with sacred medicine, and the singing of the **Nibi Song**. Drummers led participants through the spaces, and a sacred fire ceremony took place on the grounds outside RNAO, led by Wiikwemkoong's firekeeper Joshua Recollet.

The families of two prominent nurses – Edith Monture, the first Indigenous RN in Canada, and Bernice Carnegie Redmon, the country's first Black RN – were in attendance for the official naming of the Indigenous Health and Black Health spaces. The space dedicated to 2SLGBTQI+ communities is named after RNAO's first equity group, the Rainbow Nursing Interest Group. And the fourth space dedicated to RNAO's work to lead change is named in honour of RNAO CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun, who has brought seismic change to nursing practice and policy at home and abroad.  

The event's opening ceremony will take place the evening of May 28 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, where provincial elected officials and international nursing colleagues (see below) will bring greetings and best wishes for a productive AGM. A new group of Best Practice Spotlight Organization® (BPSO®) designates will also be recognized for their achievement and ongoing commitment to implementing RNAO's best practice guidelines.

The following Ontario organizations have met the rigorous expectations for designation:

• Carleton Lodge (City of Ottawa)
• Centre d'accueil Champlain (City of Ottawa)
• Garry J. Armstrong (City of Ottawa)
• Peter D. Clark Centre (City of Ottawa)
• Royal Ottawa Place
• Greenwood Court
• Heritage Green Nursing Home
• Humber Meadows LTC
• Mount Hope Centre For Long Term Care
• Sherbourne Place (Rekai Centres)
• Wellesley Central Place (Rekai Centres)
• Valleyview Home
• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

These international BPSOs will take home their coveted designation certificates:

• Hospital de Niños Roberto del Río, Chile
• Beijing Hospital, China
• Henan Provincial People's Hospital, China
• The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine, China
• Silliman University College of Nursing, Philippines

Visit RNAO's AGM portal for more information about this year's activities. 

Members of the media are welcome to attend in person or watch the livestream on the portal.

WHERE: Crowne Plaza Hotel, 900 York Mills Rd., Toronto, Ontario

WHEN: Thursday, May 28, 2026, 6 p.m. to Friday, May 29, 2026, 4:30 p.m.

WHAT: Agenda highlights

Thursday, May 28
6 – 8:30 p.m.              

• Opening ceremony featuring remarks from:
  • Dr. José Luis Cobos Serrano, President of the International Council of Nurses (by video)
  • Dr. Liz Westcott, President of Sigma Theta Tau International Honour Society of Nursing (by video)
  • Dr. Nathalie Boudreau, Director of Nursing and Health Professionals Branch, Ministry of Health
  • John Fraser, Interim Leader for the Ontario Liberal Party and MPP for Ottawa South
  • Mike Schreiner, Leader for the Green Party of Ontario and MPP for Guelph
  • RN Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care and MPP for Mississauga Centre (by video)
  • John Jordan, MPP for Lanark–Frontenac–Kingston, and parliamentary assistant to the ministry of health and ministry of long-term care
  • Dr. Robin Lennox, MPP for Hamilton Centre and NDP critic for mental health, addictions and primary care
• Ceremony to celebrate 18 new BPSO designates

Friday, May 29
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

• Report from RNAO CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun
• Consultation session of the 2026 proposed resolutions to guide the work of RNAO
• Introduction of the 2026-2027 board of directors
• Remarks from President NP Lhamo Dolkar
• Remarks from incoming President Sue LeBeau
• President and board of directors' receiving line

The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) is the professional association representing registered nurses, nurse practitioners and nursing students in Ontario. Since 1925, RNAO has advocated for healthy public policy, promoted excellence in nursing practice, increased nurses' contribution to shaping the health system, and influenced decisions that affect nurses and the public we serve. For more information about RNAO, visit RNAO.ca or follow us on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

RNAO's Best Practice Guidelines (BPG) Program is funded by Ontario's Ministry of Health. It was envisioned by CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun in 1998 and launched in 1999 to provide the best available evidence for people's care across all health sectors and settings, with more than 50 guidelines developed to date. The Best Practice Spotlight Organization® (BPSO®) program supports service and academic institutions that have formally agreed to implement multiple RNAO BPGs over a three-year period, and evaluate their impact on patients, organizations and health systems. Launched in 2003, the BPSO program now has more than 1,500 BPSOs in Ontario, Canada and internationally.

SOURCE Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario

For more information, please contact: Kimberley Kearsey, Managing Editor/Communications Project Manager, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), 1-800-268-7199 ext. 233, 416-408-5602, [email protected]; Marion Zych, Director of Communications, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), 1-800-268-7199 ext. 209, 416-408-5605, 647-406-5605 (cell), [email protected]