Shirlee Sharkey is recognized as one of Canada’s foremost experts on home care and healthy aging. As a registered nurse and the longtime CEO of SE Health, a unique not-for-profit social enterprise, she has dedicated her career to empowering people, championing compassion, and advancing social innovation to forever impact how people live and age at home. In May 2022, Shirlee stepped down from SE Health following 30 years of breakthrough leadership.
Shirlee shares her passion and expertise as a thought leader, speaker, author, and mentor. In 2020, she collaborated with a range of experts to co-author The Future of Aging, a book that has been described as “a brilliant and powerful challenge to locked-in ageist mindsets, policies and service models.” Naturally curious and committed to lifelong learning, Shirlee regularly engages with students, entrepreneurs, and business leaders from other industries. Academically, she is cross appointed to the University of Toronto’s Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation as an adjunct professor.
Shirlee’s commitment to public service is evident in her leadership and involvement on many boards, including University Health Network, the Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation, and BAYADA Home Health Care. She also serves as senior fellow of Canada’s top think tank, the CD Howe Institute. Internationally, Shirlee is a Healthcare DENMARK ambassador. Committed to global influence, she has gained and shared health system insights through her experiences in the Middle East, Australia and northern Europe.
