ROWENA RIZZOTTI

Rowena Rizzotti has been a highly successful healthcare leader with more than 30 years' experience in executive-level leadership roles across multi-site, complex health and business environments.

Rowena holds two Masters Degrees in Management and Business Administration (MBA) and also holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Biochemistry from UBC. She is clinically trained as both a nurse and a paramedic.

Rowena served as VP of Operations for BC’s largest private seniors’ care operator and also served as a Chief Operating Officer for BC’s Northern Health Authority among many other healthcare leadership roles. Rowena earned wide acclaim for her senior leadership of Fraser Heath's Clinical Programs and Operations including Surrey Memorial Hospital (SMH) and for overseeing the largest investment in BC’s history; a $500 million critical care tower in Surrey, BC.

Rowena is a founder of Innovation Boulevard, is responsible for having developed the research and innovation strategy in 2012, and developed an Innovation Centre for Healthy Aging which won a 2015 Innovator of the Year Award in BC. Rowena currently serves as the Vice President of Healthcare and Innovations for two private health sector companies, is a member of the Conference Board of Canada Council for Innovation and Commercialization and is a Mentor for SFU Beedie School of Business as well as Founder and Chief Executive for the Institute for Healthcare Innovations.