February is Black History Month, and the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing is proud to honour and celebrate Black nursing excellence by hosting a panel event, Black Nursing Leaders: Inspiring Health System Change on February 27, 2025.
Featuring alumni and leaders who have contributed to health care transformation throughout their careers, the event will also include discussions about the need for ongoing advocacy and Black nursing leadership in addressing inclusive and equity driven health.
In anticipation of the event, we spoke with panelists, Dr. Angela Cooper Brathwaite (PhD 2004), Ovie Onagbeboma, and Ava Onwudegwu, about their own motivation for being advocates for Black nursing leadership, their proudest moments so far in their nursing journey, and why recognizing Black leadership matters both during Black History Month and outside of it.
Dr. Cooper Brathwaite has a had a long and successful career in nursing leadership. Educated in Trinidad and Tobago she counts herself fortunate to have been educated by Black nurses, to have had Black mentors, and to have a mother who was also a nurse, instill in her from an early age that she could achieve anything she wanted.
She has held many positions of leadership throughout her career including Director of Nursing in an acute care hospital, a regional manager in primary care and public health settings, an Assistant Professor (part time) at a university in Ontario, and most recently as the past-President of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO).
We asked Dr. Cooper Brathwaite: Why is celebrating the achievements and advocacy of Black nurses important to you?
CB: Throughout my career I have seen the significant lack of Black nurses in leadership. I graduated from three different Canadian universities and not once did I have a Black professor, or Black dean, or mentor. I knew this had to change and it is what has motivated me to advocate not only for more Black nurses in leadership but also in positions of higher education.
In my time at the RNAO, I had the opportunity to be the co-chair of the Black Nurses Task Force engaging not only in policy advocacy but also in conducting a quality improvement study on systemic racism and discrimination of Black nurses and Nursing students in Ontario. Myself and others at the RNAO have recently advocated for race-based data to be collected by the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), healthcare organizations, and the provincial government. Race is a social construct used to judge and categorize people based on perceived differences, and it is for this reason. Our advocacy has resulted in the CNO collecting race-based data in 2024 (Workforce Census: Demographics and Nursing Practice Report, 2024). These ongoing successes indicate for me why it is important to continue to celebrate the advocacy of Black nurses even beyond Black History Month.
Ovie Onagbeboma is the current CEO of the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance, and in her work, she continues to affirm the invaluable contributions to healthcare from Black nurses enhancing their visibility and amplifying their representation at all levels. She has worked collaboratively with Canada’s Chief Nursing Officer on the Nursing Retention Toolkit to help address challenges in the nursing workforce.
We asked Onagbeboma: Is there a moment from your nursing career that has shown you the importance of Black nursing leadership?
O: When life gave me lemons—I made champagne. Reflecting on my nursing journey, I saw the need to initiate and lead the national expansion of the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance (CBNA). Before this, there were few visible Black nurses across diverse specialties to inspire and uplift others. Witnessing Black nurses unite, share experiences, and advocate for systemic change reinforced the critical need for Black nursing leadership and the transformative power of community. I have seen firsthand how representation at decision-making tables leads to more inclusive policies and better outcomes for Black and racialized communities. Black nursing leadership isn’t just about breaking barriers—it’s about embedding equity, cultural competency, research, and anti-racist principles into the fabric of healthcare.
Ava Onwudegwu, a clinical manager and current Vice-President and Director of Academic Relations at the CBNA, can recall many moments where she has witnessed ideas and initiatives being used without acknowledgement of the Black contributor or initiator. These encounters reiterate for her the reason why celebrations of Black excellence create room for acknowledgement and valuing of our Black voices and their presence.
As a Black nursing leader, Onwudegwu says it is a privilege to represent her community and be a voice for the voiceless in times where the colour of one’s skin becomes the barrier for their care, their advancement, and their acceptance.
We asked Onwudegwu: What motivates you to be an advocate for Black nurses in health system leadership?
I think one of my biggest motivations has been seeing injustices in the system and in society and therefore being compelled to act. As a mother, I feel a sense of responsibility to pave a path for my daughter and future children, proactively advocating for a world where they will excel. I also feel there is a responsibility to continue to build on the foundations of those that have gone before – the work of advocacy for our community does not start or end with us, it is a continuum that must inspire the generations to come.