Acting Director General
Public Health Agency of Canada
Stephanie Priest is the acting Director General of the Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing at the Public Health Agency of Canada. The Centre provides public health leadership on mental health promotion, suicide prevention, prevention of substance related harms, family and gender-based violence prevention and mental health supports for those most affected by COVID-19, including addressing posttraumatic stress disorder.
An arm of the Government of Canada's Health Portfolio, the Agency's goals include strengthened intergovernmental collaboration on public health and facilitating national approaches to public health policy and planning. The Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing works with stakeholders across Canada to help foster environments that support mental health and prevent mental illness, including programs focused on reducing health inequalities by promoting the mental health and well-being of children, youth and families. Stephanie has over 20 years of experience in health policy development in the federal government of Canada. She has worked extensively in leadership, management, and health care systems policy.