 Born in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, she was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as the Liberal MP for Nepean in the 1988 federal election and was re-elected in 1993 and served as chair of the Standing Committee on Human Rights and the Status of Disabled Persons from 1994 to 1996.During this period she was diagnosed with a brain tumour and, after successful surgery, was able to return to the House of Commons to resume her valuable contribution to health issues.She did not run for re-election in 1997.