Full Name
Dr. Rakesh Jetly
Job title
Doctor
Company name
Munich Re Canada
Speaker biography
Col (Ret’d) Dr. Rakesh Jetly is an internationally recognized expert in military and veterans’ mental health, suicide prevention, PTSD, and workplace psychological health. He retired as Chief of Psychiatry for the Canadian Armed Forces in 2021 after a distinguished career that included deployments to Rwanda, the Middle East, and Afghanistan—experiences that shaped his specialization in psychiatry and psychological trauma.
Dr. Jetly played a central role in modernizing the Canadian military mental health system. He led the mental health team in Kandahar, Afghanistan, and oversaw clinical care delivered by more than 400 mental health professionals across Canada. He also chaired multiple NATO expert panels, contributing to international standards for trauma care, resilience, and occupational mental health.
He has held academic appointments at Dalhousie University and the University of Ottawa and has authored more than 150 peerreviewed publications and book chapters. His contributions include coauthoring the World Psychiatric Association’s 2022 position statement on mental health in the workplace, underscoring his longstanding commitment to improving psychological health in highdemand occupations.
Dr. Jetly has advised global initiatives, including coauthoring the United Nations’ Mental Health Strategy for Peacekeepers, and has contributed to early national stigmareduction efforts such as Bell Let’s Talk.
His current work focuses on modernizing disability and occupational health practices through measurementbased care, evidenceinformed interventions, and workforce development. He has led major initiatives to integrate emerging therapies—such as interventional psychiatry, traumafocused modalities, and digital health tools—into disability and returntowork pathways, with a particular emphasis on treatmentresistant mental health conditions. These efforts help insurers and employers respond effectively to rising mental health complexity.
Dr. Jetly now brings this expertise to the insurance, disability, and occupational health sectors, supporting organizations in strengthening resilience, reducing disability burden, and enabling sustainable returntofunction.
Dr. Jetly played a central role in modernizing the Canadian military mental health system. He led the mental health team in Kandahar, Afghanistan, and oversaw clinical care delivered by more than 400 mental health professionals across Canada. He also chaired multiple NATO expert panels, contributing to international standards for trauma care, resilience, and occupational mental health.
He has held academic appointments at Dalhousie University and the University of Ottawa and has authored more than 150 peerreviewed publications and book chapters. His contributions include coauthoring the World Psychiatric Association’s 2022 position statement on mental health in the workplace, underscoring his longstanding commitment to improving psychological health in highdemand occupations.
Dr. Jetly has advised global initiatives, including coauthoring the United Nations’ Mental Health Strategy for Peacekeepers, and has contributed to early national stigmareduction efforts such as Bell Let’s Talk.
His current work focuses on modernizing disability and occupational health practices through measurementbased care, evidenceinformed interventions, and workforce development. He has led major initiatives to integrate emerging therapies—such as interventional psychiatry, traumafocused modalities, and digital health tools—into disability and returntowork pathways, with a particular emphasis on treatmentresistant mental health conditions. These efforts help insurers and employers respond effectively to rising mental health complexity.
Dr. Jetly now brings this expertise to the insurance, disability, and occupational health sectors, supporting organizations in strengthening resilience, reducing disability burden, and enabling sustainable returntofunction.
Speaking At
