She started working with people living with HIV more than 20 years ago in the first team of nurses hired by Casey House Hospice when it opened in 1988, and has been involved in HIV/AIDS care ever since. She is past co-chair of the Ontario AIDS Network, past chair of the AIDS Committee of Durham and past president of the Canadian Association of Nurses in HIV/AIDS Care (CANAC). Deborah manages the oncology and neurology rehabilitation unit at St. John’s Rehab Hospital and is a member of the board of directors at the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation.