Glenda O'Hara

Glenda O’Hara is the chair of the Client Advisory Council at The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Care Centre and as chair, she also holds a seat at the table of The Royal’s board of trustees. Glenda sits on many committees at The Royal including the Quality Committee of the Board and the Client & Family Centred Care committee.

After spending over 25 years in the fields of finance and accounting – mainly for non-profit organizations – Glenda was diagnosed with mental illness and several years ago, became a patient of the forensic program at The Royal. It was during her recovery that Glenda discovered her artistic side and became a published poet and eventually became the editor of the council’s newsletter, The Client’s Voice. Besides volunteering at The Royal with support and education groups, a facilitator, with the Client Advisory Council, and at the Royal Ottawa Place long-term care facility, Glenda also supports the arts by volunteering at Centrepointe Theatre and the Great Canadian Theatre Company.

She has shared her recovery story at peer support groups and women’s conferences in Calgary and Ottawa. Glenda shares her story with group members, staff, students and the public with the hope of reducing the double stigma of living with a mental illness and being a forensic client.