Dawn Richards

Director, Patient and Public Engagement, Clinical Trials Ontario

Dawn Richards, PhD, is the founder of Five02 Labs Inc., and Director of Patient and Public Engagement at Clinical Trials Ontario. With a PhD (Analytical Chemistry) from the University of Alberta, and experience in a variety of roles during the past 20 years, it is her diagnosis with rheumatoid arthritis fifteen years ago that started her journey to combine her passion for science with making the most of her diagnosis. In her role at CTO, Dawn is charged with executing on CTO’s strategic pillar of patient and public engagement.

As a patient, Dawn is Vice President of the Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance, a Research Ambassador for the Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research), and was a member of The BMJ’s Patient Advisory Panel and the first Patient Advisor of the Canadian Medical Association’s Wait Time Alliance. She advocates for disease awareness, access to treatment and research options, and including patients as partners on research teams and in decision-making.