Our Story

Our Leadership Team

Black lives have faced many challenges that have rendered our voices silent.

We have been excluded from the tables of decision-making about the things that impact our lives. We have been put on the sidelines and overlooked. Empirical evidence speaks of our discrimination in all spheres of life over the ages and still, no significant change is seen. In 2020, an increase in brutality against Black lives in the US ignited an uprise of response across the world. Amidst this upheaval, Canadians were confronted with the ever existing reality that Black lives were experiencing deep and prevailing racism in all sectors of society.

A call to action required that a group of nurses needed to take a stand for the unheard voices of Black Nurses in Canada. Within the healthcare sector, Black Nurses historically have been discriminated against, devalued, passed over, not given credit for their contributions in nursing history and underrepresented at leadership tables. With a feeling that the unique needs of Black nurses were not being met in July 2020, Ovie Onagbeboma birthed the vision of the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance (CBNA) and aligned with five nursing leaders to begin the process of organizing Black Nurses across Canada. The first national organization for Black Nurses in Canada CBNA was born from the overwhelming and long-standing need for the voices of Black nurses to be heard.

CBNA established its first affiliate in the form of an academic club at McMaster University in August 2020. The club caters to McMaster University Black nursing undergraduate students under the leadership of Ezwina Egoi and Abena Owusu.

Federally Incorporated in September of 2020, the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance (CBNA) is a non-profit organization that serves to advance Canadian Black Nurses through empowerment, mentorship, and advocacy.
The founding leaders of CBNA are Ovie Onagbeboma, Ava Onwudegwu and Karen Pingal. Additional foundational contribution credit is given to Nadine Smith, Sarah Musabimana and Shaunattonie Henry .

Although a membership organization, the CBNA’s programs and activities are for the benefit of Black Nurses, nursing students, licensed/practical registered nurses, and retired nurses in Canada. We operate as a platform for Canadian Black Nurses. The leaders of the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance recognized that in order to make a difference in the experience and outcome of Canadian Black Nurses, that Black Nurses had to take the lead.

We are financed by member subscriptions, donations, and fundraising activities.

Ovie Onagbeboma

Ovie is nationally recognized as a nurse and business leader. She is a registered nurse, pursuing her Master in Business Administration and is a clinical nurse manager. She is Lean Six certified. Additionally, Ovie is a sought-after consultant to many national organizations. She is an advisor to the Canadian Nursing Association, and the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing, and is a stakeholder with Canadian Health Workforce Network.

Ovie is a transformative leader who identified a serious problem in healthcare and acted quickly to form a national organization and initiative to address this problem. She recognized that existing nursing associations work primarily to advance the collective interests of the nursing profession as a whole – an important mission. They do not, however, effectively help individual nurses maximize their personal and career potential – and none of the legacy nursing associations fully understand or adequately meet the unique needs of Canada’s Black Nurses. So, she conceived an organization that would fulfill those unmet needs – the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance (CBNA). Under Ovie’s leadership and in a short period of time, CBNA has become a phenomenal national organization that is life-changing for many Black Nurses. She consulted with her peers and built consensus around what a new organization would look like – an organization dedicated to creating a national community of Black Nurses who assist one another to achieve each individual’s potential. The CBNA was born when Ovie’s drive and determination sparked the imagination of her peers and unleashed their energies toward a solution.

Already, the CBNA has grown to include students and practicing members in multiple provinces across the country and has become the most influential voice for Black Nurses across Canada. Increasingly, journalists and ally organizations in the private and public sectors recognize CBNA as the leading voice for Black Nurses in Canada. CBNA’s plans for need-based scholarships and mentoring programs are becoming a launch pad for more Black Nurses to rise to senior leadership ranks within the nursing profession, at academic institutions, and throughout the community.

As a result of Ovie’s remarkable leadership with CBNA, and her commitment to social justice and equity she was asked to become an expert consultant in the development of Open Educational Resources with the Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University). Her expertise in concepts surrounding diversity, equity, and anti-Black racism as well as her passion for inclusion and change will make these resources relevant and current. She is a dynamic and highly effective community leader who has integrity, and commitment and knows how to gather people around her and motivate them to get things done.

Recognizing a need for Black Nurses in Canada to support one another in the face of the many challenges and obstacles they face – some common to all nurses, others unique to Black nurses – Ovie decided to do. A woman of African descent, Ovie sees the future of nursing through an African proverb Ubuntu and embodies the understanding that “I am because we are” as a motivation to strive for a society where all can grow and flourish. Ovie has broken the glass ceiling to inspire the next generation.

Ava Onwudegwu

My name is Ava Onwudegwu and I grew up on the beautiful Island of Jamaica, before migrating to Canada at the age of 18. I am currently an Assistant Patient Care Manager in the Medicine Department at St. Joseph’s Health Centre – Unity Health Toronto. I have held various positions at Unity Health Toronto, from staff nurse on the Resource Team and in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU); as well as, eCare Support, Professional Practice Leader for Nursing Practice and Education, Manager of Nursing Practice and Education, and Clinical Educator – Nursing. I have also had the opportunity to work in academia as a Clinical Instructor and Clinical Advisor. I am also currently an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Toronto.

In all my leadership experiences I was always the only Black person on the team. I didn’t see Black representation or mentors. As the Academic Coordinator at CBNA, I am motivated by my desire to empower and build another generation of leaders who will forge the way for the generations to come. I am passionate about seeing Black nurses and Black nursing students reach their highest heights. I believe we have so much to offer. We must all leave a legacy!

Outside of the world of Health Care, I am passionate about working with young adults, travelling and dancing. I have been part of different planning committees for conferences geared to empower Women and Young Adults. I have also been featured as a speaker and guest performer at many of these events.

Not only do I give back to my immediate community but on a larger scale, I have travelled to Israel, the Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago, and other areas within Canada doing humanitarian work.

Karen Pingal

Karen Pingal is a Registered Nurse and medical policy analyst. Karen has had the privilege of working in a variety of health care settings including acute mental health, street outreach and long-term care.

The Director of Quality at CBNA headquarters, Karen not only seeks to empower Black Nurses to let their excellence shine but also to advocate for patients, specifically black patients who are often overlooked and dismissed. Outside of her nursing career, Karen enjoys spending time with her husband and daughters, working on DIY projects and travelling.

Jennifer Philogène

Jennifer Philogène is a Registered Nurse who has 6+ years of critical care experience and 3+ years of clinical teaching experience. She completed her Bachelor's at McGill University. She recently left the bedside in the public system and is advocating for Quebec nurses. She also offers tutoring and mentoring services. Jennifer is now doing travel nursing around the country.

Ezinwa Agokei

Co-Founder and President of CBNA-McMaster. Now the newly appointed Academic support for CBNA. As the academic support of CBNA, I aspire to equip and enable black nursing students in various universities and colleges to establish a positive space in their school community. As a former student nurse, I benefited from the events and network provided by CBNA-McMaster, in return as navigating my role in CBNA my mainstay is to always give back to students. As I begin my professional career as a nurse, I hope to grow in nursing leadership from the bedside to education and even policy.

I want to inspire nurses to take up space regardless of background, race, or disability, and strive to achieve the things they truly want even when it seems impossible.

Abi Olayinka

Hello! My name is Abi Olayinka, and I am the graphic designer for CBNA. I study Global Business and Digital Arts at the University of Waterloo and I serve as the graphic designer for the Black Association for Student Expression at the university.

The world of digital art has provided me with a safe space to express my ideas in an endless possibility of ways. When I am not designing, I like to play basketball, spend time with my family, and indulge in my favourite dish and its many variations, pasta. I love experiencing the joys of life with friends and family around me!