About Us

Learn more about our team

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Reverdi Darda

President & CEO

Reverdi is the President and CEO for Cena Life Inc. With over 30 years of experience as a Registered Nurse, her experience and expertise in the areas of community engagement, planning, and project and change management have significantly impacted the outcomes of numerous initiatives that she has been involved in. Reverdi understands the challenges that healthcare systems and their structures have in offering consistent, reliable, client-focused services and is passionate about bringing evidence-based innovation forward for those in need.

Reverdi is Metis and a direct descendant of Damase Carriere who fought against Canadian Colonialism beside Louis Riel in the heroic Metis North-West Resistance of 1885. Her passion to engage communities and work together for the equity and inclusion of all is reflective in her family’s legacy.

Her professional career includes executive leadership roles in the public, government, and non-profit sectors. She currently sits on the board of MAPS Canada. Reverdi has a passion for life-long learning and she easily unites individuals to achieve common objectives, goals, and outcomes.

Dr. Sheehan Chowdhury

Medical Director & Chief Psychiatrist

Dr. Chowdhury is a board-certified psychiatrist and the Medical Director and Chief Psychiatrist at Cena Life Inc. Dr. Chowdhury completed his medical degree from the University of Calgary, followed by a psychiatry residency program at the University of British Columbia before completing a geriatric psychiatry fellowship at the University of Alberta. Dr. Chowdhury’s expertise in neurostimulation led him to his role as Medical Director of the rTMS clinic at the Mood Disorders Association in Vancouver. Additionally, Dr. Chowdhury runs the Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Program at a tertiary hospital in the Vancouver metropolitan area.

Jacque Lovely

Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Jacque is a registered nurse with over 20 years experience as a clinician, academic educator, operations manager, program developer, strategic planner, and large scale health system transformer. He has served patients across the life span and supported system change spanning the continuum of care. He has earned two master’s degrees: a Masters of Science in Nursing focused in knowledge utilization and research uptake in the healthcare context, and a Masters of Business Administration, focused in executive management and system redesign. He describes himself as a mission-driven professional aiming to bring the best possible care, supported by the latest emerging evidence, to individuals, families, and care givers who need it. 

Priya Bains

Lead Psychologist

Priya has been practicing as Registered Psychologist in Alberta for over 15 years.  Her clinical practice focuses on trauma and somatic processing to help achieve healing for her clients.  As a Certified Hakomi Therapist, Priya believes in our relationship to many realms including the cognitive, emotional, physical, social and spiritual aspects of life.  Moving into the discipline of psychedelic medicine is a continuation of the work and space she already holds for her clients to do their own healing.  She is excited to partner with a variety of medicines that will facilitate the therapeutic process. Priya is also a business owner, mother, partner, and nature-lover, and is delighted by moving her physical body.

Lisa Kemp

Director of Programs

Lisa Kemp is a registered nurse with over 20 years of experience in healthcare as a clinician, operations manager, and clinical educator. She later branched out into leadership roles that facilitated building mental health capacity in primary care, enhancing indigenous services in remote areas, and serving as a governance representative. This work repeatedly demonstrated the importance of integrated interdisciplinary team models that share expertise and create a network of support for healthcare providers while ensuring seamless quality care for patients. Lisa’s passion for the area of psychedelics led her to join the Cena Life team, to continue working with service providers and clients from diverse backgrounds and build quality programs that support healing for those in need.

Dr. Raiyan Chowdhury

Medical Advisor

Dr. Raiyan Chowdhury is a board certified otolaryngologist and critical care medicine specialist. He graduated from the University of Alberta residency programs in ENT surgery and critical care medicine. Thereafter, he completed a master’s in health quality and patient safety from Northwestern University / Kellogg School of Management in Chicago.

Dr. Chowdhury has held a variety of leadership positions in the medical field including completing his role as associate director of the Royal Alexandra Intensive Care Unit in 2022 and Quality lead for the department of critical care medicine at the University of Alberta in 2022.  He’s one of the founding partners of Alberta Ent Consultants and Canadian Cancer Care. Both clinics excel at ambulatory high quality specialized care. He is a partner at Advanced Facial Surgery in Edmonton and the medical lead for Melody Hearing and Aria Sleep MD.

Raiyan’s interests are in bringing high quality care to Canadians regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds and, in particular, in the area of mental health for patients and family members following a critical illness.