Dania Versailles

Dania Versailles is a registered nurse with a diverse healthcare background and experience.  She graduated at the diploma level from John Abbott College in Montreal in 1995 and now has two master’s degrees under her belt.

Dania has worked in many roles at the bedside, in professional practice, in education, management and research in several settings. Currently she is a director of clinical services in community mental health working with several teams and service provider partners to improve access to care and treatment for individuals who live with severe and persistent mental illness. Too many are homeless or vulnerably housed, struggle with substance use health issues and are involved with the justice system and/or regularly visit emergency departments as a result. She is no stranger to the impact social determinants of health may have on individuals.

This is why for over twenty years, Dania has been a member of RNAO by being involved with Chapter 10 (Ottawa Region), with the clinical nurse specialist interest group. She was also a stakeholder reviewer and an expert panel member for the development and review of various Best Practice Guidelines (BPGs) and implemented several BPGs over the years.

In 2020, she had the privilege to be part of the Black Nurses Task Force and in 2021 became a co-founding member and co-chair of the Black Nurses Leading Change interest group (IG), which received the Interest Group of the Year award in 2023. The IG successfully presented three resolutions with the aim of addressing healthcare inequities in workplace places and academic settings by : a) advocating for and removing barriers to integrate anti-racist competencies in nursing curricula, b) promoting education and continuing professional development training opportunities in various healthcare professions and c) facilitating access to culturally safe, inclusive and sensitive environments for Black NPs to improve their mentoring, recruitment and retention.
Currently, Dania remains involved as the past-chair of this very active interest group while she continues to support a collaborative approach with other groups to promote health equity for all, with namely RNAO’s In-Focus health equity consortium.

Further since 2019, Dania was instrumental in guiding the Archipel Ontario Health Team in participating in and achieving designation of RNAO’s Best Practice Spotlight Organization to improve care and service delivery through the partnership of four service providers.  

Dania is fueled by the numerous opportunities to transform layers of complex challenges into lasting improvements and solutions co-designed with clients and peers throughout the healthcare system when she is not busy hosting or presenting at events to improve RNAO membership or mentoring students and colleagues.

Dania is eager to continue progressive involvement with RNAO and would be honoured to serve as Region 10 board representative.