Anna Rychtera (co-chair)
Anna Rychtera (co-chair)
Anna (Anni) Rychtera is a former Health Sciences College Educator, Nurse Practitioner, and Natural Health Practitioner. She has worked in rural and remote areas, including Nunavut, and in a variety of settings and across diverse cultures.
Her lived experience with chronic respiratory illness, chronic nerve pain (following a sports injury and delayed surgery), and as a cancer survivor has shaped her strong belief in the importance of being an informed patient and an equal partner in health care and decision-making. Anni was a long-time volunteer facilitator and Health Coach for the University of Victoria’s self-management programs and continues to serve as a “First Link” Peer Support volunteer with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Her involvement with the BC SUPPORT Unit and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) began as a co-facilitator for the CIHR pilot program for Canada’s Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR), contributing to the publication Co-building a Patient-Oriented Research Curriculum. She is passionate about advancing health research, improving health outcomes, and promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion for all.
In addition to her role on the Community Partner Committee (CPC), Anni is a Research Partner with Research Ethics BC and the BC SUPPORT Unit, a member of SPENCoP (SPOR Patient Engagement National Community of Practice), and a PaCER (Patient and Community Engagement Research) student at the University of Calgary.