Dr. Stan Kutcher is a leading psychiatrist and professor who has helped young people successfully manage major mental illnesses. In December 2018, he was appointed to the Senate of Canada. Dr. Kutcher studied history and political science before earning a medical degree from McMaster University. He continued his education in Toronto and in Edinburgh, Scotland before joining the University of Toronto, where he made the first of many major contributions to Canadian health care, taking Sunnybrook Hospital’s adolescent psychiatry division and transforming it into an innovative clinical and research facility. He also pioneered research into the causes of and treatments for youth with major mental illnesses. Dr. Kutcher then became Head of the Psychiatry Department at Dalhousie University followed by appointments as Associate Dean for International Heath and the Sun Life Financial Chair in Adolescent Mental Health. He has published over 400 articles and authored, co-authored or edited numerous books, and has shared his expertise with organizations in over 20 countries. Dr. Kutcher is also involved in his community. He’s served on the boards of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Spryfield Boys and Girls Club. He led the development of a national youth mental health framework for Canada as a member of the Child and Youth Advisory Committee of the Mental Health Commission of Canada. Among numerous honours, he’s received the Order of Nova Scotia, the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Naomi Rae-Grant and Paul D. Steinhauer Advocacy awards, the McMaster University Distinguished Alumni Award and the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada’s John Ruedy Award for Innovation in Medical Education. Dr. Kutcher is married to Jan Sheppard Kutcher. They live in Herring Cove, NS, and have three adult children and six grandchildren.
